Princess Anne stands in for King Charles on historic anniversary

In her role as president of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, Anne attended a ceremony on Sunday at the Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery.

She was pictured laying a wreath at the foot of the Cross of Sacrifice in tribute to the troops who fought in Operation Market Garden in 1944. 

Operation Market Garden was intended to create a route for the Allied forces into northern Germany. 

It saw around 1,900 allied airborne troops from the 4th Parachute Brigade jump from military aircrafts into the occupied Netherlands in an attempt to capture the bridges at Arnhem. 

Elsewhere during the service, Princess Anne read psalm 91. 

For the poignant outing, Anne looked smart in a slate grey skirt suit splashed with navy polka dots. She slipped on a pair of black leather pumps and accessorised with a matching leather handbag. 

The royal coiffed her tresses into her trademark bouffant style and added a pair of statement pearl earrings for added sophistication. 

Last night, meanwhile, Princess Anne and Timothy attended a reception at the Airborne Museum Hartenstein in Oosterbeek. 

The former hotel served as the headquarters of the British 1st Airborne Division during the battle.

During the event, the mother-of-two said on behalf of the monarch: “Eighty years ago, on this very weekend, Operation Market Garden was under way in this region of the Netherlands.

“An ambitious joint airborne and ground forces operation designed to seize crucial bridges to enable the advance into Germany, its ultimate aim was to end the war within a matter of months.

“The friendships made during those difficult days of September 1944 between the Dutch and their liberators continued after the war.

“I saw this for myself five years ago when, as Colonel in Chief of the Parachute Regiment, I attended the 75th anniversary commemorations.” 

She continued: “Tragically, despite the endless courage of all those who served in an operation whose renown echoes through the generations, the Netherlands had one more terrible winter to suffer before liberation finally arrived.

“Today, on this 80th anniversary, it is with a deep sense of gratitude and humility that we remember all those in the British, Allied and Commonwealth forces who served and died fighting for our freedom.

“Let us also remember those magnificently courageous members of the Dutch resistance and gallant civilians who endured so much during the Second World War.”