Kate Middleton visited AW Hainsworth which held a royal warrant from the late Queen and bought a woollen manufacturer once owned by her father Michael Middleton’s relatives.
The company, based in Spring Valley Mills in Stanningley, made the scarlet tunics of the Guardsmen on duty during the coronations of both Queen Elizabeth II in 1953 and the King in May.
It supplies textiles to a range of clients, from fashion and homeware brands to the Armed Forces, produces woven felt for pianos and other musical instruments, and creates protective materials for emergency services and military personnel worldwide.
Here are the best pictures from the Royal visit in Leeds.
13. Royal visit
Amanda McLaren, AW Hainsworth’s managing director, said after the visit: “She was fascinated by some of the traditional processes and also things like the dye house where she could see the fabric that is worn by the Buckingham Palace guards…being dyed red, and it really brought home to her the intricacies of the process and the skills of our people.” Photo: James Hardisty