Prince Charles, sorry, King Charles III – he was Prince Charles for a lot longer than he’ll be King – will be visiting Front Royal on Thursday, as part of a quick tour of the Shenandoah Valley at the end of his state visit.
Best news: he’s not bringing Donald Trump with him.
KC3, with Queen Camilla in tow, will be in the northern part of the Shenandoah Valley to take part in the Front Royal 250th Celebration.
Don’t expect to get anywhere near, if you decide to make the drive up I-81.
This is what DiscoverFrontRoyal.com has to say about that:
This is a short and celebratory parade — more of a moment than a full-day event. Space along Main Street will be a bit tight, but that’s part of the fun — just bring your best Front Royal spirit, and we’ll make it a great day together.
At least the weather should be nice – AccuWeather projects the temperature at the 11 a.m. start of the festivities at 61 degrees.
Front Royal, first settled in 1754, is the county seat in Warren County, population: 15,400.
Before tomorrow’s visit by His Royal Majesty, the town’s claim to fame was its baseball stadium, Bing Crosby Stadium, so named because the famous crooner performed an impromptu concert in Front Royal after serving as the grand marshal of the Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival Parade in neighboring Winchester in 1948.
Crosby donated the first $1,000 toward the town’s effort to build a new baseball stadium, then arranged to have the world premiere of his film “Riding High” be at the Park Theater in Front Royal in 1950 as a fundraiser that brought in $15,000 – inflation value of that money today: $205,000.
I still think Bing Crosby Stadium will be the coolest thing to happen to Front Royal, because, I mean, Bing Crosby really went all out for Front Royal, but even so, yeah, it’s mighty nice to have the King stopping by.
According to Buckingham Palace, King Charles will leave Front Royal for Shenandoah National Park to “meet one of the area’s indigenous communities and people involved in conservation initiatives and efforts to protect America’s natural environment,” while, separately, Camilla will venture across the Blue Ridge to visit The Plains.
The official schedule doesn’t say this, but my research here suggests to me that she will be visiting Great Meadow, which will be hosting the Virginia Gold Cup, a prestigious steeplechase race held annually, dating to 1922, which, according to the race’s website, is “sometimes referred to as Virginia’s answer to the Kentucky Derby.”
Best part of this: again, no Trump.
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Chris Graham
