From the colourful cobbled squares of Stockholm to the snowy enchantment of Holmenkollen hill, Oslo, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s visit to both countries next week will deliver myriad photo-ops to saturate local media.



The royal couple will also deliver, the Foreign Office hopes, a clear message: Britain may be leaving the EU, but we are still part of Europe.



Ever since Henry VIII invited Francis I of France to the jousting and feasting extravaganza at the Field of the Cloth of Gold, the so-called “soft power” of the royals has been harnessed as a diplomatic resource.



The Tudor king, freighted with gold and precious jewels, greeted his French counterpart with 500 horsemen and 3,000 foot soldiers in tow in a show of wealth and strength combining both hard and soft power. Two years later, however, the countries were once more at war.



William and Kate arrive in Sweden on Tuesday aboard a private jet with a comparatively modest entourage of 13: private secretaries, press officers, logistics staff, Kate’s privately funded hairdresser and their senior adviser, Sir David Manning, a former British ambassador to the US.



“The UK’s links with each country are extensive, and their royal highnesses are looking forward to building a lasting friendship with both Sweden and Norway,” said a Kensington Palace spokesman.



The couple’s unspoken task is to woo Europe as the UK undertakes the process of leaving the EU and rebooting existing trade relations.



Royal overseas visits are decided by the FCO, with schedules drawn up by the British ambassador to the host country, who accompanies the royal visitor throughout. Since the vote for Brexit the Cambridges have been dispatched to France, Poland and Germany, Prince Harry has travelled to Denmark, the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall have visited Romania, Italy and Austria, and Kate has undertaken a solo trip to the Netherlands.



Toothpaste smiles in stunning settings certainly satiates domestic media. Glitter and gowns will be on show at an official dinner in Oslo’s royal palace hosted by King Harald V and Queen Sonja.



An intimate black-tie bash for up to 30 guests in Stockholm, hosted by the British ambassador, will yield photographs of hereditary royalty alongside the Hollywood variety. The Swedish actors Alicia Vikander, star of Testament of Youth, and Stellan Skarsgård, TV’s River whose numerous films include Good Will Hunting and The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, are invited.



But, while the Cambridges are the catalyst, the FCO hopes for a purposeful, constructive dinner talk between prime ministers and diplomats, business leaders and defence chiefs. The aim is for tangible results and lasting legacies, and the FCO believes the value of such facetime to Brand Britain is inestimable, gracing British ambassadors and senior embassy staff in the host countries with rare and personal access and allowing foreign leaders unique insight.



As such, the private two-hour lunch hosted in July by the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, for the duke and duchess – and accompanying British ambassador – would have been viewed as diplomatic gold. William’s speech in Germany, rubber-stamped by the FCO, assured the German public that despite Britain’s decision to leave the EU, “the depth of friendship with Germany will not change”; he is likely to replicate such sentiment in speeches on this tour.



Superficially, it seem these visits are all about the pictures. “And they are important,” said David McClure, the author of Royal Legacy and the forthcoming The Queen’s True Worth. Soft power, however, is “relational”, he said. It cannot hinge on “two youngish good-looking royals”. Norway and Sweden have their own monarchies and are more relaxed than countries where it is a novelty. “I don’t think it is right to say it doesn’t have any effect at all, but sometimes it really depends on which country and which royal,” he said.



There will be many pictures: in Stortorget, a medieval square in Stockholm, and on a boat trip through the city’s glittering nightscape to the Fotografiska gallery. Weather permitting, there will be jolly images of the royals observing hearty Nordic pursuits such as bandy (a sport similar to ice hockey), skating in frozen parks and skiing off-piste on the hills above Oslo.



Alongside these photo ops, British businesses will be in the spotlight. Stockholm’s NK department store will showcase an interactive exhibition on UK design, fashion and brands in Sweden, while its store windows display the best of British.



In Norway, the couple will visit MESH, a co-working space for entrepreneurs and start-ups, some of them UK companies. The royals’ spokesman said: “One of the priorities for the duke and duchess has been looking at technology and creative businesses, which are more likely to be led by people of their own generation. Establishing relationships with young entrepreneurs has been important on their recent visits and will be on this occasion as well.”



On a visit to Sweden’s world-renowned Karolinska Institute, they will learn of pioneering scientific research in to managing mental health challenges. The hope would be that this yields links with UK partners for application of the research.



The business and strategy consultants Brand Finance estimated that the monarchy would bring the UK £42bn in “intangible” economic benefits from tourism, trade, charities and media. “Members of the royal family can also proactively encourage trade by acting as ambassadors for the UK during their international visits,” it reported. Royal patronage or a visit are “extremely helpful to push big deals over the line”, said David Haigh, the CEO of the consultancy.



The former prime minister David Cameron once described the UK as “the soft power superpower”, while the government told a 2014 House of Lords select committee the monarchy was “a unique soft power and diplomatic asset”.



Not all share the FCO’s steadfast belief in royalty’s soft power. “Visits abroad by the royal family may raise the profile locally of the UK,” said Gary Rawnsley, a professor of public diplomacy at Aberystwyth University who has researched soft power. However, research showed that “this does not necessarily convert into affection for the UK – its values or its policies. Neither do such visits change opinion about or behaviour towards the UK, especially when relations at government level are fraught.



“Audiences can have high levels of positive opinion about the royals, but a low opinion of the British government and the way it behaves at home and abroad,” Rawnsley said.



The British Council, the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and education opportunities, believes such visits have enormous value for its work. Rachel Launay, its country director in Germany, said of the Cambridges’ visit last year: “People wanted to see a couple who portray a fresh modern image of the British royal family.” The visit meant the “the British Council had the opportunity to introduce them to creative Germans and Brits who are setting the cultural agenda in Berlin together”.



Queen Victoria was extremely savvy about soft power, marrying off her children to European royalty, which makes this trip almost a family affair for William.



King Harald of Norway, 80, is the Queen’s second cousin while King Carl Gustaf XVI of Sweden, 71, is her third. William, 35, and Kate, 36, will be escorted by Princess Victoria, 40, and Prince Daniel of Sweden, 44, and Prince Haakon, 44, and Princess Mette-Marit of Norway, 44, during their visit.



And so will endure the familial links with future sovereigns of Europe.