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The King joined Queen Camilla for a Maundy Thursday service
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King Charles was left touched after an adorable meeting with "Lilibet" outside Durham Cathedral today.
The King joined Queen Camilla for a Maundy Thursday service in the North East of England, and met royal fans afterwards.
Pat Johnson, 54, of Jarrow, South Tyneside, attracted Charles's attention after bringing an 18-month-old Pembrokeshire corgi called Lilibet to the stand outside the service.
She said afterwards: "He asked if she was friendly, and he asked me what her name was.
King Charles left touched after adorable meeting with 'Lilibet' outside Durham Cathedral
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"I said I named her after your mother and said, 'You look well', and he said, 'You are very kind, but it's all mirrors.'"
Lilibet was the nickname of the late Queen Elizabeth II, who struggled to pronounce her name as a young girl.
She was referred to as Lilibet by her parents, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and King George VI, and also by her sister, Princess Margaret.
Prince Philip, the late Queen's husband, also called the monarch "Lilibet".
King Charles met a beautiful Corgi called 'Lilibet'
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The nickname later inspired Prince Harry and Meghan Markle when naming their daughter, Princess Lilibet Diana.
Today was Charles's second Maundy Service as King; the Queen stood in for him last year after he was forced to rest amid cancer treatment.
The service, which previously featured the monarch washing the feet of the poor to emulate Jesus, is a major event in the royal calendar.
Before the service, the Dean of Durham, Very Reverend Philip Plyming said: "Maundy Thursday is about remembering the service and sacrifice of Jesus and it will be so special to celebrate in such a memorable way those who live out the example of Jesus today."
King Charles greeting crowds of royal fans in Durham
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Queen Camilla and King Charles arriving at the Maundy Thursday service
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The King also issued an Easter message prior to his outing with Queen Camilla.
The monarch referenced both Islam and Judaism in the speech, saying: "The love He showed when He walked the Earth reflected the Jewish ethic of caring for the stranger and those in need, a deep human instinct echoed in Islam and other religious traditions, and in the hearts of all who seek the good of others.
"The abiding message of Easter is that God so loved the world — the whole world — that He sent His son to live among us to show us how to love one another, and to lay down His own life for others in a love that proved stronger than death.
"There are three virtues that the world still needs — faith, hope and love. 'And the greatest of these is love'. It is with these timeless truths in my mind, and my heart, that I wish you all a blessed and peaceful Easter."