From HRH Princess Alexandra at St George's Day ceremony
Wandsworth Town Hall played host to a Royal visitor on St George’s Day when a special ceremony was held for 20 borough residents who were formally granted British citizenship.
Her Royal Highness Princess Alexandra attended the special St George’s Day ceremony and presented each of the new citizens with a specially-minted commemorative coin.
The new citizens each swore an oath of allegiance to the Queen and sang the national anthem as part of the process of gaining citizenship.
These ceremonies are a legal requirement for new citizens to the UK and are the final stage in their application for British nationality.
At the start of the ceremony a detachment of Royal Marines entered the council chamber carrying Union Jack flags, while a choir from St Cecilia’s School in Southfields sang ‘Jerusalem’. This was followed by “I vow to thee my country”.
Princess Alexandra was invited to the ceremony because of her and her family’s close links with the borough.
Her grandmother, Queen Mary, officially opened the new Wandsworth Town Hall in 1937 and Princess Alexandra herself opened the borough’s Register Office in 1993. She also took part in the celebrations to mark the council’s centenary in 2000.
Following the ceremony the Mayor of Wandsworth Cllr Jane Cooper hosted a small reception in her office for Princess Alexandra and the Royal Marines who had paraded with the flags and formed the Honour Guard at the ceremony.
As well as meeting the marines the Princess was shown a host of memorabilia dating back to her grandmother’s historic visit in 1937. She was also presented with a special commemorative DVD containing footage of that visit.
May 2, 2012