Thursday was a very special day for Captain Tom Moore, the war veteran who has raised over £31million for NHS Charities Together. Not only did he celebrate his 100th birthday, but he was also promoted to Honorary Colonel by the Queen. Captain Tom aimed to raise £1000 for the NHS by walking 100 laps of his garden in his Bedfordshire home ahead of his birthday. On the morning of his special day, the total had reached a whopping £30million and is still climbing hours before the donations page closes at midnight. In honour of his incredible achievement and reaching a huge personal milestone, members of the royal family have been sending Captain Tom their birthday wishes. Keep reading to see what they said…
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge
Prince William and Kate Middleton posted a sweet photo of Captain Tom to their Instagram Stories on Thursday afternoon to send him many happy returns. The photo sees Tom holding a birthday card he received from the Queen. They captioned the image: "A very happy 100 birthday to the incredible one-man fundraising machine Captain Tom Moore, who received his 100th Birthday card from Her Majesty The Queen today!" They also added a birthday cake emoji.
MORE: Jamie Oliver bakes ultra-indulgent cake for Captain Tom's 100th birthday
The Queen
Each year, thousands of birthday cards are sent on behalf of the Queen to people celebrating significant birthdays, and Captain Tom was no different as he too was gifted with a card from her Majesty. However, this was slightly different as Tom's was personally delivered by Lord Lieutenant of Bedfordshire, the Queen’s personal representative in the county. Sharing a photo of him with Helen Nellis, the royal family's official Instagram account posted: "Today we join people across the UK and around the world in wishing Captain Tom Moore a very happy 100th birthday."
But her Majesty didn't stop there as she also approved Captain Tom's promotion to Honorary Colonel of the Army Foundation College Harrogate. General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith, the head of the army, made the appointment the day before Tom's centenary in recognition of his incredible NHS fundraising feat. He has also been re-presented with his Second World War Defence Medal, just ahead of next week's VE Day celebrations.
Prince Charles and Duchess of Cornwall
Prince Charles and Camilla posted a photo of Colonel Tom on the official Clarence House Instagram account, quoting the Duchess during a recent video call with Dame Darcey Bussell and Angela Rippon. During the call, Camilla reflected on her pride at watching the war veteran complete his 100 laps. The quote read: "That wonderful man, Captain Tom, walking around and raising all that money - that sort of thing makes you proud to be British, doesn’t it." The royal couple added: "Wishing a very happy 100th birthday to Colonel Tom Moore today!"
Keep scrolling for more birthday messages to Captain Tom from the royals...
Sarah Ferguson
The Duchess of York paid a lovely tribute to Colonel Tom, mentioning his late wife Pamela, who died in 2006. Sharing a beautiful black and white photo of the couple on their wedding day, Sarah wrote: "Colonel Thomas, Happy birthday and to Pamela in your heart, 100 years and together you are so strong."
MORE: Petition for nation's hero Captain Tom Moore to be knighted reaches half a million signatures
Princess Eugenie, Princess Beatrice and Prince Andrew
As well as her own personal message to Captain Tom on Instagram, Sarah Ferguson, Princess Eugenie, Princess Beatrice and Prince Andrew sent Captain Tom a show-stopping birthday cake. The personalised creation featured an edible figurine of himself at the top of the cake, dressed in a black suit while walking with his stroller on the grass with red poppies. Scattered across the cake were several NHS badges, the union jack flag, miniature newspaper articles and a gold framed photo frame with a picture of Tom as a captain in the army alongside a recent snapshot of him wearing his medals.
The personalised cake also had a message on it, which read: "Happy birthday Captain Thomas, with love to all your family, from the York family."
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