Guernsey Press

William walks in mother’s footsteps on visit to mosque in Lahore

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge earlier played cricket and attended a children’s village on day four of their Pakistan trip.

Published
Last updated

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have made a visit to the Badshahi Mosque in scenes that brought back memories of the duke’s late mother Diana, Princess of Wales.

William and Kate were given a tour of the holy site in Lahore on the fourth day of their royal tour of Pakistan.

Kate wore an emerald green headscarf with a gold trim and a matching shalwar kameez by Maheen Khan during the couple’s visit to the second-largest mosque in Pakistan.

Royal visit to Pakistan – Day Four
William and Kate at Badshahi Mosque, Lahore (Owen Humphreys/PA)

The late Diana visited the religious site in 1991, on one of her visits to the Islamic country.

It was also included in the 2006 royal tour of the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall.

William and Kate walked on a red carpet through the holy building with the imam before being given a tour of the inside, where they heard a Koranic verse.

Among the group was Dr Ayesha Leghari, a Sunni Muslim scholar, who explained the verse to them.

“I was telling then how it is compulsory for us to respect other religions,” Dr Leghari told reporters afterwards.

“God sent a messenger to every part of the globe and peace is to be attained through the process of growth.

The Duke and Duchess embarked on Lahore for the fourth day of their royal tour (Owen Humphreys/PA)
The Duke and Duchess embarked on Lahore for the fourth day of their royal tour (Owen Humphreys/PA)

She added that the couple were “charming” and interested and engaged in the discussion.

When William and Kate left the mosque, they were told by Mr Aijazuddin: “If there’s one word to describe your visit, it is joy. You have radiated joy wherever you have been.”

The duke replied: “We are very happy people.”

Wrapping up their fourth and penultimate day, the couple are to travel to the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre.

The cancer facility is another location previously visited by the late Diana, as a guest of her friend Imran Khan, the former cricketer who is now prime minister of Pakistan.

Earlier on Thursday, the couple both took turns at the crease in a game of cricket at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore.

The competitive couple both spent some time at the wicket before high-fiving the young boys and girls they had been playing with.

Royal visit to Pakistan – Day Four
Kate at the crease in Lahore (Ian Vogler/PA)

Their first stop on the fourth day of their tour was a trip to the SOS Children’s Village, where they attended a birthday party.

The duchess made her first speech of the week at the charitable organisation, which provides a home for some 150 orphaned young boys and girls.

Sorry, we are not accepting comments on this article.