His Royal Highness Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, the youngest brother of King Charles III of Great Britain, will visit the Czech Republic after five years. He will come to Prague at the invitation of Jiří Zrůst, Chairman of the Council of the Duke of Edinburgh's International Award (DofE), on Tuesday 23 May and a packed three-day programme awaits. This will be primarily dedicated to supporting young people, teachers and schools involved in DofE activities. To promote ecology and sustainability, Prince Edward will be arriving by train from Germany.
The Duke of Edinburgh will arrive at Prague Central Station on Tuesday afternoon. His first steps will be to meet DofE participants at the UK Embassy, where he will also be welcomed by the DofE's Executive Director Tomáš Vokáč and the British Ambassador to the Czech Republic Matthew Field.
On Wednesday morning, His Royal Highness will visit the village of Vestec, where he will plant the last tree in Prince Philip's Avenue in Vestec near Prague, which was created in 2022 to mark Prince Philip's 100th birthday. On this occasion, Prince Edward will also meet dozens of young people involved in the DofE programme, as well as regional politicians.
The most important point of the Prince's three-day programme in the Czech Republic will be the Golden Ceremony, which will take place on Wednesday afternoon in the Senate of the Parliament of the Czech Republic. During the ceremony, His Royal Highness will honour 42 DofE participants who have successfully completed the gold level of the DofE programme.
"The DofE programme has been successful not only in the Czech Republic, but also around the world. The programme enables personal development for all young people. It strengthens their determination, perseverance, responsibility and wellbeing. We see the visit as a reward not only for the participants of the programme, but also for the teachers, who dedicate their free time to DofE. It is also a recognition of the commitment of the principals, supporters and partners who share our belief in the power of non-formal education and learning," Tomáš Vokáč, Executive Director of the Czech DofE, said of the planned visit.
On Thursday morning, Prince Edward will spend the day at the House for Children and Youth Prague 4 - Hobby Centre 4, which is one of the Prague DofE centres. The Duke will meet the programme participants, their leaders and DofE staff. The wreath-laying ceremony at the National Memorial to the Heroes of the Heydrichiad at the Church of Saints Cyril and Methodius in Resslova Street will be the finale of his visit to Prague.
The DofE programme was founded in 1956 by HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, husband of Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain. Hence the name The Duke of Edinburgh's International Award, abbreviated DofE. The programme has been running in the Czech Republic since 1995. Thousands of young people from all walks of life have been through the DofE programme over its history. Last year over 7,000 people took part in over 320 schools. Prince Edward will meet dozens of them.
HRH Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, is the youngest brother of King Charles III of Great Britain and became patron of the DofE after the death of his father Prince Philip. He and his wife, Duchess Sophie, visit the Czech Republic regularly. The Prince visited the Czech Republic at the invitation of the DofE in 2013 and 2017. The Duchess last came to support students in 2015.
