Lisbon, July 2016. Her Majesty’s Ambassador to the Portuguese Republic, HE Kirsty Hayes, has accepted to join the Honorary Committee of the Portuguese Centenary Appeal. In a letter sent to the Chairman of the Appeal, Anthony Bailey, Her Excellency said:
“I am delighted to support the work of the Portuguese Centenary Appeal. As Her Majesty’s Ambassador to the Portuguese Republic, I am honoured to play a part in the unparalleled diplomatic and military alliance between our two countries, which dates back centuries.
“In 2015, we were delighted to host in Lisbon a copy of the Magna Carta, during its 800th world tour, alongside the Windsor Treaty, which set the foundation of our ancient alliance.
“2016 was, of course, the year we reflected on the centenary of the Portugal’s formal entry into World War One, an entry which once again meant British and Portuguese soldiers fighting – and dying – side by side, on the battlefields of Europe, just as they had done during the Peninsular Wars. Thousands of Portuguese soldiers perished as well as unknown numbers of soldiers from the former Portuguese colonies. For too long this contribution has been little known in the UK, and so I am delighted to lend my full support to this important cause.
“I wish the Centenary Appeal all the very best of luck in the coming months and years.”
