Royal visit: Prince Charles and Camilla in County Waterford

The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall met members of the Déise Medieval group in Waterford

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall are in County Waterford at the start of a visit to the Republic of Ireland.

The official visit started in Waterford city centre with a greeting at Reginald's Tower and a Viking re-enactment near a replica longboat.

Charles and Camilla also met Ukrainians living in the county.

Prince Charles said it was most moving to meet refugees who had fled the war and are now in Waterford.

Speaking at a reception hosted by the city's mayor, the prince began his speech in Irish.

He went on to describe the Russian invasion as brutal aggression and praised the Irish government's response to the crisis.

"Such times as we are living through bring into sharp relief the importance of peace and friendship, which history tells us we can too easily take for granted," the prince said.  

"It is yet another demonstration of how our two countries are not just neighbours, but partners who, though at times we have travelled a troubled road together, have through reconciliation and understanding forged a future that has benefitted both our peoples and the world."

The Irish government says that up to 200,000 refugees may arrive in the Republic, which has a population of about five million.

Prince Charles visited Kil Mige Mogue farm, near Waterford

The royal couple also had a walkabout close to the city's Viking Triangle.

Afterwards they visited a selection of museums where they were given a history of Reginald's Tower.

While its official foundation as a permanent settlement dates back to 914, historians say there are a number of references to Viking encampments as early as 860.

The Prince of Wales also sampled Waterford whiskey at the farm

"From a Viking town, to a city with a royal charter, to the place where the first Irish tricolour was flown, to the home of a new university and acclaimed as the best place to live in Ireland, Waterford is a city of promise and hope for the future," Prince Charles said. 

During the walkabout, Charles and Camilla met business owners and staff outside shops lining their route.

Knitwear designer Christine Murphy, whose brightly coloured outfit was admired by Prince Charles, said the couple were "very welcome" in Ireland.

The Duchess of Cornwall with Grand National winner Minella Times at Henry de Bromhead Stables in Knockeen

The 45-year-old, whose Waterford-based business specialises in sustainable clothing, said: "He said to me 'I love the colours, is this your work? Are you a designer?'

"I thought he was very personable and giving of his time. I think it's amazing for Waterford, which is Ireland's oldest city, to have a royal come here and acknowledge that, given the history between Britain and Ireland.

"They're very welcome by the Waterford people today."

Prince Charles also visited local social enterprise Grow It Yourself (GIY), where he helped some schoolchildren with a potato-sowing demonstration.

He was accompanied on the visit by Ireland's Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney, and toured the site's cafe as well as meeting community groups in the vegetable patch and frontline staff from the neighbouring hospital.

Later, the couple visited the Waterford Crystal Factory.

Then, while Charles was enjoying visits appealing to his environmental passions - including to Kil Mige Mogue farm, near Waterford - Camilla, a keen horse rider, went to trainer Henry de Bromhead's Stables in Knockeen.

The royal couple also visited the Waterford Crystal factory

It is their their first trip to the Republic of Ireland since 2019 and it is expected to last three days.

It comes after they completed a two-day visit to Northern Ireland, which began in County Tyrone on Tuesday before a series of engagements in Belfast on Wednesday.

• Charles meets Ukrainian refugee on NI visit

The visit is one of several spring tours by senior royals to celebrate the Queen's platinum jubilee.