A royal engagement celebrated five decades of cultural preservation and local history.

The Duke of Gloucester visited the Chiltern Open Air Museum in Buckinghamshire, accompanied by the Lord-Lieutenant and the High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire, marking the museum’s milestone 50th anniversary festivities.

During his tour, the Duke encountered students from Alder Grove Church of England Primary School participating in an Anglo-Saxon educational program.

The Duke watched as the young people took part in an archaeological excavation, discovering how to examine and determine the age of historical objects.

The royal visitor also toured the museum’s Victorian lambing facility and conversed with farm manager Rachael Maytum regarding the museum’s Oxford Down sheep and their significance to farming traditions in the Chilterns.

The Duke proceeded to the Village Green area, where he viewed various historic structures, including a 1940s prefabricated house, wartime Nissen huts, and a recently rebuilt 1950s bandstand originally from Finsbury Circus.

Established in September 1976 by volunteers from the Historic Buildings Group of the Chiltern Society, the museum safeguards endangered buildings that showcase everyday life in the Chilterns region.

Each building is carefully taken apart, moved, and reconstructed at the location in Chalfont St Giles.

The museum welcomed its first visitors in May 1981 with just four-and-a-half structures and 95 guests.

Today, the attraction hosts over 50,000 visitors annually.

In honor of its 50th year, the museum is requesting that visitors and volunteers submit photographs and recollections through its website.