King Charles gives Anne his blessing to unveil touching tribute to late Queen
Princess Anne has unveiled a touching tribute to her mother the late Queen at the place King Charles spent some of his toughest childhood years.
The Princess Royal visited Gordonstoun School in Moray, Scotland, where she officially opened what is said to be one of the greenest classroom buildings in the UK. The classroom hub at the school has environmentally friendly credentials including solar panels, ground source heating and hi-tech C02 monitoring. And Anne unveiled a plaque naming the classroom hub The Queen Elizabeth II Rooms, in honour of the late Queen and with approval from the King – a former Gordonstoun student.
Princess Anne officially opens new classrooms at Gordonstoun School named in honour of the late Queen (PA)During her visit on Thursday, Anne, who holds the role of Warden at Gordonstoun, met students and was given a guided tour of the building, which has six classrooms along with a staff room and breakout area. Her children Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips are among the royals to have been educated at Gordonstoun, as were the late Prince Philip, Prince Andrew Prince Edward.
Gordonstoun principal Lisa Kerr said: "We are committed to providing our students with the best possible learning environment while being mindful of reducing our carbon footprint. The low carbon design is a signpost to how we want to develop the rest of the school estate as part of our bold masterplan leading up to the school’s 100th anniversary.
"Gordonstoun is always looking for ways to innovate and The Queen Elizabeth II Rooms is the first step in our biggest building project since the Second World War. The classroom hub is built to the highest environmental standards and provides our students and staff with the latest facilities, technology and equipment.
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Prince Charles is accompanied by Prince Philip on his first day at Gordonstoun in 1962 (PA)
The Queen visits Charles on his last day at the school (Mirrorpix via Getty Images)"HRH The Princess Royal spent time seeing how AI (artificial intelligence) is used in the classroom and our robotics club gave an impressive demonstration, which hopefully bodes well when they compete in the national championships later in the year." Much of the design of the building was inspired by Dumfries House in East Ayrshire, which Charles helped save for the nation in 2007 while he was Prince of Wales, and Gordonstoun representatives visited the estate as part of the planning process.
The Queen Elizabeth II Rooms, clad with Siberian Larch timber, have the latest technology, including control systems for removing and adding walls to change the size of the existing rooms, and interactive teaching walls. Designed by architects Rivington Street Studio, the building opened to students and staff in April 2023 following 14 months of construction.
Charles attended Gordonstoun, a boarding school in Scotland, from the age of 13, following in the footsteps of his father Prince Philip. He left the school, where pupils used to run around freezing fields and take ice-cold showers, in 1967 with five O-Levels and two A-Levels. Reports have suggested Charles found his school days difficult and it is claimed he famously described the school as "Colditz in kilts".
However, after leaving the school, Charles defended it - and says he was lucky to be able to attend and learn about himself. During a House of Lord's speech, which he made in the mid-1970s, he said: "I am always astonished by the amount of rot talked about Gordonstoun and the careless use of ancient clichés used to describe it.
"It was only tough in the sense that it demanded more of you as an individual than most other schools did - mentally or physically. I am lucky in that I believe it taught me a great deal about myself and my own abilities and disabilities. It taught me to accept challenges and take the initiative."
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