Donald and Melania Trump received King Charles III and Camilla of the United Kingdom this Tuesday in a pompous State ceremony in the South Lawn of the White House, on the second day of the British royalty’s official tour, with which both countries commemorate 250 years since the independence of the 13 founding colonies of the United States. The Marine band performed the two official anthems with their trumpets, followed by the traditional 21-gun salute, a military honor reserved for the highest dignitaries.
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The four leaders greeted the present members of the U.S. and U.K. governments and reviewed 300 U.S. Army soldiers, a historic event for a State visit to the White House. The monarchs will also sign the guest book and exchange official gifts. The ceremony will give way to a closed-door bilateral meeting between Trump and Charles III, while Queen Camilla and First Lady Melania will head to an event with students at the White House tennis pavilion.
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“What a beautiful British day this is,” Trump said in a brief speech after receiving the monarchs, alluding to the light rain falling on Washington. He celebrated the “centuries-old bond of history” between the two countries, adding that “Americans have no closer friends than the British.” The president praised the King’s “beautiful accent” and said his Scottish mother “adored the royal family” and “was in love with Charles.”
In the afternoon, at 3 p.m. (9 p.m. in mainland Spain), the monarch is scheduled to give a brief speech at the Capitol, the second of its kind in the history of the bilateral relationship, which is conceived as the most momentous since Charles III inherited the throne in 2023. The visit comes in a rarefied atmosphere of heightened security after Saturday’s shooting at the Hilton hotel in the capital, where a gunman opened fire outside the ballroom where Trump was scheduled to give a speech, but it was his third assassination attempt in two years.
The monarchs’ tour commemorates two and a half centuries of relations between both countries which, despite their ups and downs, continues to be considered one of the strongest alliances in the world. Since Trump’s return to power, and after his threats to NATO, his military interventions in Iran without prior notice to allies, his high tariffs, and his constant lecturing of European politicians, the bilateral relationship has given way to a certain mutual distrust.
Charles is officially the head of state of Canada, which Trump says he wants to turn into the 51st state, as they have an “artificial border” with the U.S.; he is the head of that Army that the White House incumbent disregards by stating that “their ships are toys and we don’t need them”; and he is the head of the Church of England, and as such, he gets goosebumps when he sees his host characterized as Jesus Christ on his social media.
Donald Trump, U.S. President
“I’ve always wanted to live in Buckingham Palace. I’ll talk to the King and Queen about this in a few minutes!”
However, in reality, Trump’s disagreements with the United Kingdom respond more to the ideology of Keir Starmer, whom he has referred to as a “weak” leader, far removed from the legacy of Winston Churchill, whose bust he returned to the Oval Office after his return to the White House 15 months ago. However, he appreciates King Charles III, especially his figure as monarch, with whom he has repeatedly fantasized through his social media, where he often posts AI-generated images depicting him as a king.
In fact, an hour before the monarchs’ arrival at the presidential residence, Trump shared on his platform, Truth Social, a news story from the British tabloid Daily Mail titled: “How the Mail traced Donald Trump’s family tree and discovered he is a cousin of King Charles III.” It recounts the president’s Scottish origin on his mother’s side and goes back 15 generations to find a convoluted distant kinship. Trump celebrated it: “How nice! I’ve always wanted to live in Buckingham Palace. I’ll talk to the King and Queen about this in a few minutes!”
The British monarchy, always so attentive to protocol, has tried at all costs to avoid any gaffe by Trump that could damage the delicate diplomatic relationship, so bilateral meetings have been scheduled privately, without the possibility of questions from the press. After a brief and cordial reception at the White House, where both heads of state and their wives shared tea on Monday, this Tuesday Trump dedicated a State ceremony to them, with the pomp that accompanies this type of event.
The day will continue at the Capitol and will end tonight with a State dinner, with which Trump will return the courtesy of King Charles III, who received him at Windsor Castle last September.
Charles III will recall at the Capitol that, despite their ups and downs, “again and again both countries have always found ways to unite”
The speech King Charles III will give this afternoon, before a joint session of Congress, will be the second time a British monarch addresses the Capitol for a similar event. The first to do so was his late mother, Queen Elizabeth, in 1991. According to British media, the monarch is scheduled to speak for only 20 minutes, in which he will emphasize that, despite their differences, “again and again our two countries have always found ways to unite.”
A hot topic in the bilateral relationship is the trade agreement signed by both countries, which Trump has threatened to break. The distance between the British and American governments has increased even further since Washington decided to go to war with Iran, in a joint operation with Israel that has already lasted almost two months.
British Prime Minister Starmer refused to participate in the offensive and also to reopen the Strait of Hormuz for the duration of the war, while his government is moving closer to the European Union, from which the United Kingdom withdrew in 2020 after a controversial referendum. Trump’s Security Strategy, a document that outlines the Administration’s geopolitical priorities, explicitly refers to the need to “cultivate anti-European and far-right resistance” in EU countries, a commercial and moral union that, instead of dividing, has become stronger thanks to U.S. antagonism.
