The Duke of Sussex has laid a wreath at the Australian War Memorial (AWM) in Canberra as part of a brief stop in the nation’s capital.
Prince Harry shook hands with several Indigenous veterans and attended an Indigenous smoking ceremony at the AWM led by Ngunnawal Gomeroi man Michael Bell.
In his Welcome to Country, Mr Bell explained the symbolism of the For our Country memorial which he said “was a yarning and learning circle” that encased a fire.
“We’ve provided a place to commemorate,” Mr Bell said.
“And the significance of the uneven rock represents the difficult journey of our men and women to get in and out of service during the historical periods of exclusion from military service by the authorities.”
The Duke of Sussex reflected at the For Our Country memorial in Canberra. (ABC News: Matt Roberts)
The Duke paused for a sombre moment as he took in the memorial then he spoke to memorial representatives before moving on.
He will remain at the memorial for the afternoon and is due to address an Invictus Australia event after attending a Last Post ceremony.
Canberrans gathered on the AWM grounds to see the Duke of Sussex. (ABC News: Matt Roberts)
Many Canberrans were gathered on the memorial’s grounds to get a glimpse of the Duke.
Prince Harry’s visit to Canberra is brief with his whirlwind tour including more events back in Melbourne on Thursday.
The Duke flew solo on a commercial Qantas flight to the capital without the Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle.Â
He sat in the front row of the plane and there were reports the cabin crew were surprised when they noticed he was on board.
He has already visited Melbourne’s Royal Children’s Hospital and a women’s shelter with wife Meghan, and this morning he met members of the Western Bulldogs AFL team for a Movember event.
It is the first time the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been in Australia since 2018, and the first since the couple officially distanced themselves from the royal family.