UK Edition
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge today met with survivors of the Bataclan shootings, praising the bravery and "amazing progress" they have made as they recover at Les Invalides.
Jessica Bambal Akan, 25, was shot seven times in the leg, hip and back as she dined with friends at La Belle Equipe restaurant in Paris, while a 28-year-old fireman who wished to be known only as Kevin, was a concert-goer at the Bataclan when he was shot in the leg.
Both have been undergoing rehabilitation at the hospital ever since, and were among star guests meeting the Duke and Duchess on Saturday.
Jessica said the encounter meant a great deal to both survivors, who have found it invaluable to speak about their trauma and prove to the public that life goes on.
The Royal couple also heard the extraordinary histories of some of Les Invalides oldest inhabitants, centenarians who worked for the Allies during the Second World War.
The Duke told the Bataclan attack survivors: "We think you are very strong and very brave, you've made amazing progress."
The Duchess added she would be keeping an eye out for Jessica's work, after learning she is retraining to work in fashion.
Jessica, 25, said: "At first [after the shooting] I was a bit shy and didn't want to talk about it because of all of the pain and grief.
"But now I want to say we are not only victims, we have lives, we have boyfriends, girlfriends, work. I want to speak about my friend who died to honour him, I want people to remember who he was."
She was shot on her birthday as she dined with three female friends outside the restaurant, who all survived the attack. Her friend Victor Munoz, who was inside, was killed with one shot.
"We were very lucky," she said of her friends outside. "We all got shot and we all survived."
The Duke hailed the "quick-thinking" of her boyfriend, who made a tourniquet for her leg on the scene.
"It's been very difficult," she said. "I like to move. I got through this because of my friends, my boyfriend, my family who helped me all the time."
The Duchess asked how she had found readjusting to life after the accident.
"You feel like you're in a dream," Jessica said, adding that she had tried to view her rehabilitation work as a job in the week, and enjoy her weekends as she did before.
She used her convalescence to learn Italian, and is now hoping to work organising fashion shows, telling the Duchess she had noted her Chanel outfit.
"I was ambitious, I am still ambitious," she said, speaking in English. "If I want revenge I must live and work and prove they [the terrorists] can't touch how we live in our great country.
"It sparked something: I realised you need to live."
Kevin described how he attended a concert at the Bataclan, only to hear shouting and gunfire.
"They started shouting at the audience and opened fire," he said.
"Anyone who shouted was shot, so I tried to be as quiet as possible.
"I was hit twice in the leg but lay there and kept quiet."
He too is being treated in Les Invalides.
Of meeting the Duke and Duchess, he said: "It was a very positive experience because I was able to speak about this experience and what I went through.
"It feels very important to tell these stories and be listened to."
Asked how his emotional recovery had been, he told the Royal couple: "It gave me a challenge, I like a challenge."
The Duchess said: "You're a very brave man."
The couple also spent time with the elderly inhabitants of Les Invalides, including one 101-year-old man who escaped the Nazis three times during the Second World War.
The Duchess was charmed by Colonel Jean Camus, 100, and Chief Petty Officer Georges Zwang, who will turn 102 in May. Both reached for her hand to kiss it as they were introduced.
Col Camus fought in France in 1939-40, was taken prisoner by the Germans, escaped, joined the French resistance and escaped twice after being captured by Vichy forces and the Germans.
He managed to reach London in 1943 and served as an intelligence officer in the Central Bureau of Intelligence and Operations, before returning to France in August 1944 for the end of the war.
As they were introduced, the Duke exclaimed: "As escape artist!"
The veteran joked: "I spent most of my life in jail. I could write a book."
The Duke replied: "You should, it would be a bestseller."
Col Camus added: "I didn't expect to live so long, it's a surprise. I'm very glad to see you living and not on pictures as I saw the Queen and Charles. Thank you for listening."
The veteran told the couple his wife had been made an MBE but now suffers from Alzheimer's and could not make the journey to meet them.
The Duchess said: "Please send her our best wishes."
They were also introduced to Chief Petty Officer Georges Zwang, who will turn 102 in May. He served in the French navy from 1934-1940 and went on the join the Royal Navy before joining the Free French Forces and taking part in the landing and battle of Provence where he was seriously injured.
Captain Stephane, from French Special Forces, who was severely injured during Operation Serval, joined them, along with Mrs Montcorge, 94.
She was a lieutenant in the Free French Forces in 1943 in London and was appointed as liaison officer to General Patton commanding the 3rd US Army from June 1944 to the end of the war in 1945.
She told the Duke and Duchess she had been appointed after studying in America.
Moving to the prosthetics room, the couple met Sergeant Phillippe, who was training in the French army as a dog handler when he had motorcycle accident leaving him with one prosthetic leg.
He has previously met the Duke, who presented him with medals at the Invictus Games, where he won a gold in the 100m and silver in the 200m in 2014, then a gold in the driving challenge and bronze in the 100m in 2016.
The Duke said: "You are a huge inspiration for all the other guys."
They also met two servicemen suffering from PTSD, to be known as Kevin and Francis, who discussed their mutual love of football and tonight's rugby match.
The Duke and Duchess, who was wearing a Chanel coat, were greeted by General Ract Madoux, governor of Les Invalides, who introduced them to a short history of the hospital, built in 1670 by Louis XIV for his veterans.
Today, Les Invalides houses around 80 pensioners, with a cutting-edge prosthetic department helping wounded servicemen and women.
The Duke and Duchess were shown an ornate book, explaining how Charles II, King of England, wrote to Louis XIV to ask him to share with him the plan about the creation of the hospital.
It went on to inspire the foundation of the Royal Chelsea Hospital.