Princess Kate had an emotional reunion with “an old friend” as she and the Prince of Wales spoke with Holocaust survivors ahead of a ceremony to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.
The royal couple met around 50 survivors of the Nazi campaign and survivors of subsequent genocides at a reception on Monday afternoon, and Kate, 43, appeared overcome when she reunited with two people she photographed in 2020.
Wearing all-black, the princess hugged Yvonne Bernstein, 87, and Steven Frank, 89, and told them it was a “treat” to see them again.
As she sat catching up with Yvonne, the two women held hands, with Yvonne stroking the Princess’s arm and thanking her for coming.
“It was such a treat for me to come and see an old friend,” Kate said.
She had greeted Yvonne, who was one of the thousands of Jewish children hidden across Europe during the Holocaust, by saying: “It’s so nice to see you,” and hearing that Yvonne had suffered some health problems, she added: “You’ve had such a hard time, haven’t you?”
Kate also shared a warm hug with Steven who thanked her for sending him a Christmas card and the two chatted about his family.
Steven was born into a secular Jewish family in Amsterdam and survived two camps during the Second World War.
William sat with Polish-born Alfred Garwood, who survived Bergen-Belsen as a child and Bosnian genocide survivor Sabina Kadic-Mackenzie, who now lives in Liverpool.
Both the Prince and Princess discussed their desire to teach their children about the Holocaust, with William saying: “George is getting to the age where he’s starting to understand things. So it’s getting interesting to talk to him about what happened.”
Apologising that they couldn’t spend longer talking, he said: “There is a lot of history at this table, we need to hear it all.”
Kate asked Lady Milena Grenfell-Baines: “Do you write a diary? It’s so important that these stories are written down. They are still relevant stories.”
On arrival, the prince and princess of Wales were welcomed by Olivia Marks-Woldman, HMD chief executive and Laura Marks, the charity’s chair of trustees.
“I can’t believe it’s been 80 years,” said William. “It’s staggering.”
Telling the Princess she was glad she was feeling well, Kate replied: “Thank you, it’s good to be able to be here.” Speaking ahead of her reunion with Stephen and Yvonne, she added: “It will be good to see them again.”
“We are glad we are here,” said William. “It’s important to be here.”
The royal couple then posed for a photograph with 50 Holocaust survivors, along with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner.
Other politicians meeting survivors and their families in the reception included Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, former Home Secretary Sajid Javid and Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey.
The couple then attended a ceremony at The Guildhall, where William gave a reading and the couple lit a candle alongside young representatives from the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust and other partner organisations. The candles acted as a symbol to remember all those who lost their lives in the Holocaust and other genocides.
The ceremony will be broadcast on BBC1 at 7pm tonight.