Royals charm Quebecers, protests kept away
QUEBEC CITY — Prince William and his bride Catherine charmed a crush of well-wishers in Quebec City on Sunday as police lines kept republican protests far from their first official foreign…
QUEBEC CITY — Prince William and his bride Catherine charmed a crush of well-wishers in Quebec City on Sunday as police lines kept republican protests far from their first official foreign trip as newlyweds.The duchess of Cambridge, sporting a blue lace Jacquenta dress by Canadian designer Erdem, accepted flowers from wide-eyed young girls as her husband the duke exchanged polite banter and shook hands with fans outside city hall.William, who spoke in French and apologized for his awkward accent, thanked supporters for their warm welcome, coming one day after anti-monarchist protests in Montreal marred their tour of Canada."I hope that we will have the chance to get to know each other over the years to come," he said, pledging to return to the city, once the cradle of French civilization in North America that spanned from Acadia in easternmost Canada to Louisiana in the southern United States.As the prince spoke, a small plane passed overhead dragging a banner across the sky touting a controversial phrase delivered by French president Charles de Gaulle in Montreal in 1967, "Long live a free Quebec."But it was as close to disrupting the royal visit as protestors would get.A few blocks away, some 200 republican demonstrators with placards that read "end to the monarchy" and "William go home" jeered and chanted for an independent Quebec but were drowned out by well-wishers' cheers.Organizers of the demonstration had promised to top angry protests in Montreal on Saturday.Riot police were called outside a Montreal children's hospital the royal couple visited and at the Quebec tourism and hotel business institute where they took a cooking class to keep the peace.In Quebec City, barricades kept protesters away from the royal tour.Britain conquered the former French colony of Quebec in 1763, but its culture and language survived, and today it is a bastion of French culture in North America.British rule, however, still evokes resentment in some quarters of the Canadian province.According to historians, Quebecers'
last modification 2011-07-03 23:15:30
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