THOUSANDS of people lined the streets to give the Queen a true royal welcome as she visited Dorset yesterday to unveil a statue in honour of the Queen Mother and take a tour of the Duchy of Cornwall estate.

The royal party visited the ‘urban extension’ of the county town at Poundbury, home to 3,000 people, to see the latest developments and visit Queen Mother Square. 

The last time the Queen visited the estate was 18 years ago.

Accompanied by Prince Philip, son Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, the Queen arrived by train to Dorchester South in the morning. 

The Royal Train passing through Bournemouth station on its return journey to London

She was welcomed by the Lord-Lieutenant of Dorset, Angus Campbell and the mayor and mayoress of Dorchester, Tim and Anita Harries. 

Dorchester town crier Alistair Chisholm welcomed the Queen to the county town with a cry.

Mr Harries said it was an "honour" to be the town's mayor for the royal visit.

Families gathered outside the station for the momentous occasion in the hope to catch a glimpse of the Queen.

Her Majesty made her way to Poundbury and was welcomed in Queen Mother Square by thousands of people cheering and waving flags.

The Queen visited Waitrose and master planner Leon Krier and development director Andrew Hamilton showed her the plans of the estate. Her Majesty then visited the Duchess of Cornwall, the new pub in the square.

Wearing a sky blue cashmere coat and paisley patterned dress for the occasion, the Queen walked down the dairy isle of Waitrose and met with a local farming family who supply milk for the organic range sold in the shop.

Rupert Thomas, marketing director for Waitrose, said: "It was lovely and a delightful experience for all of our partners to have and such an honour. The Queen was fascinated to talk with the dairy farmers and the local producers."

Before leaving Waitrose, the Queen and Prince Philip were presented with big hampers which Prince Philip was particularly taken with, full of local produce, pies and extra dog biscuits in the Queen's hamper for her corgis.

Addressing the crowds before the unveiling of the Queen Mother’s Statue, Prince Charles said: “It is a great honour for Her Majesty to be with us today 18 years after you first came here for such an important occasion in the history of Poundbury, on the edge of the historic town of Dorchester. 

“Twenty-five years ago all this was a mere dream – to most people, except for the late Sir David Landale the then Duchy of Cornwall secretary, a completely mad dream.

“Battling against the tide is an uncomfortable experience I can assure you, and for that reason I’m indebted to both the brilliant master planner and conventional mould breaker Leon Krier and to Andrew Hamilton, the long suffering and highly professional development director.”

Prince Charles thanked the builders, whom he called "local Dorset men through and through" for their "dedicated efforts and loyalty" and everyone involved in making the vision for Poundbury a reality.

Today, over 2000 people work in 180 businesses on the estate first built in 1993 and over 500 people are employed in construction. The vision was to create a 'walkable community' where people, not machines and cars, are a priority.

After the speeches, the Queen unveiled the cast bronze statue of the Queen Mother before the National Anthem was played. 

After the Queen departed, the opening of the Duchess of Cornwall Inn was officially marked by the Duchess herself as she poured a pint for Prince Charles of a specially brewed beer, appropriately called Duchess.​