King Charles III visits Lichfield Cathedral and LGBT+ memorial

King Charles has visited Staffordshire for an engagement at Lichfield Cathedral and the dedication ceremony of the LGBT Armed Forces memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum.

Crowds lined outside the cathedral to greet the monarch, 14 years after the late Queen Elizabeth II’s visit to the historic landmark.

At the venue, the King viewed the Table for the Nation carving, which is made from 5,000-year-old black oak, and is in residency in Lichfield for a year.

He then travelled to the arboretum, where he lay flowers to honour LGBT+ people who have served in the military.

Earlier at the cathedral, the King was serenaded by a choir as he made time to speak to members of dozens of community groups, including representatives from the city’s food bank and Liberty Jamboree, which supports young people with learning or physical disabilities, and volunteers from the cathedral’s embroiderers.

The Dean of Lichfield Cathedral, the Rt Revd Jan McFarlane, said the cathedral was “thrilled” to welcome the King.

“We are so proud of our magnificent cathedral and city, and it means a great deal to everyone to be able to show our King all that is happening in our community,” she added.

The King was cheered by thousands of well-wishers as he visited the cathedral, including former Lichfield MP Michael Fabricant and fans from Italy and the US, who waited outside for hours.

Some members of the crowd waved flags, held posters and photographs and chanted “God save the King” as the royal spent time shaking hands and speaking to people.

Later, at the arboretum, he viewed a sculpture, named “an opened letter”, which recognised people who served at a time when they could face intrusive investigations, dismissal and in some cases imprisonment.

Peter Gibson, the chief executive of Fighting With Pride which led the memorial project, said the unveiling was “a deeply emotional moment, expressing in physical form that what happened to them should never have taken place”.