Princess Anne joins special royal rank after marking 60-year milestone

Princess Anne was rewarded for her hard work and dedication with a rare honour, which was previously only held by her late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, brother King Charles and Princess Kate.

The Princess Royal, accompanied by her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, is currently undertaking an important two-day visit to Singapore on behalf of the royal family, immediately after her Australia visit.

Following a sombre outing earlier in the day, Princess Anne was delighted with a special gesture as she marked 60 years of diplomatic relations between the UK and Singapore.

Anne, dressed in an orange jacket over a patterned blue dress, was presented with a purple-hued orchid during her appearance at the National Orchid Garden for the naming ceremony.

Named as ‘Dendrobium Anne’, Chief executive officer of the National Parks Board Singapore Hwang Yu-Ning gave the pretty flowers potted in a plant to Anne.

In response, the Princess Royal said, “Thank you for that. That’s very special, thank you very much.”

At one point during the ceremony, Anne also stopped for a minute to look at the ‘Dendrobium Elizabeth’, named after her mother.

King Charles Flower

A rose was named after Charles as ‘The King’s Rose’ is which particularly special since it is the “first striped rose, created in collaboration with The King’s Foundation” as he was named patron of Royal Horticultural Society last year. 

It was tribute to “the enduring values” King Charles III through the work of the foundation,

“investing in education, sustainable practices, and the revitalisation of heritage”.

Princess Kate Flower

Earlier this year, The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) named a rose after Princess Kate as ‘Catherine’s Rose’ to raise awareness of the role that spending time outdoors plays in supporting people's mental, physical and spiritual wellbeing.

The move was to acknowledge the cancer battle of the princess.