King Charles III to deliver landmark address in first foreign visit as monarch

King Charles III will do something no British royal ruler has done when he leaves the UK for his first state visit as monarch.

Before King Charles III is officially crowned, the British monarch will make his first state visit to France and Germany in a highly symbolic move seen as a post-Brexit olive branch to the United Kingdom’s historical rivals.

As part of the state visit from March 26 to March 31, the King will become the first British monarch to address both the French senate and the German Bundestag.

Buckingham Palace announced the six-day visit to two of the UK’s closest allies to “celebrate Britain’s relationship with France and Germany, marking our shared histories, culture and values.”

King Charles and wife Camilla, Queen Consort, will join French President Emmanuel Macron from March 26 to 29 before the next leg of the tour in Germany.

In addition to shoring up the UK’s alliance with Europe two largest powers, the visit to France has been seen as honouring the late Queen Elizabeth II’s affection of France.

King Charles chose France as the first country to visit as monarch in a highly-symbolic move. Picture: AFP

Queen Elizabeth II, accompanied by her husband Prince Philip, last undertook state visits to France and Germany in 2014 and 2015 respectively.

Elizabeth, who was a fluent French speaker, made five state visits to France during her reign, in addition to numerous private visits.

Her first visit to France was in 1948 as the 22-year-old Princess Elizabeth. In 1957, when she returned to France as queen, thousands lined the streets to cheer her as she travelled through the capital.

When the King and Queen Consort travel to France in March, they will be the guests of honour at a state banquet hosted by the Macrons at the Palace of Versailles. They will also hold a ceremony of remembrance and wreath laying at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, and officially open the new Manet and Degas exhibition at the Musee d’Orsay.

The King will be joined by Camilla, Queen Consort, on his six-day tour of France and Germany. Picture: AFP

They will also travel to Bordeaux, in southwestern France, to “witness first-hand the devastation caused by last summer’s wildfires”, and visit an organic vineyard, the palace said.

A Macron aide has previously said the visit would illustrate the “age-old attachment of his country to ours, beyond Brexit”.

It would also be a sign of “family continuity, because Elizabeth II was a Francophile and a Francophone”, the aide told Le Parisien newspaper.

Macron himself paid tribute to Britain’s late monarch following her death in September 2022.

In a message to the British people, he recalled a “great head of state” and a “unique example of devotion to her people and a very close ally”.

“With her, France and the United Kingdom shared not just an ‘entente cordiale’ but a warm, sincere and loyal partnership,” he added.

On her last state visit to France in 2014, she joined 1,800 World War II veterans and 18 heads of state and government, including the US and Russian presidents Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin, to mark the 70th anniversary of the Normandy landings.

“Look at our Parisians, how much they love you,” president Rene Coty told her.

Then Princess Elizabeth, and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, visit Paris in 1948, just after the end of the Second World War. Picture: AFP

She returned to France often as Queen, as seen here in 1992 with the Duke of Edinburgh during a state visit. Picture: AFP

The King’s first visit as monarch to Europe will be his 35th official visit to France and 29th official visit to Germany.

On March 29, King Charles will head to Berlin and in Brandenburg before heading to Hamburg, the palace added.

“The fact that King Charles chose Germany and France as his first destinations before his coronation is also an important European gesture,” German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said in a video message.

Parisians loved the Queen as much as she loved Paris, and King Charles III pays tribute to his late mother’s memory by choosing France for his first state visit. Picture: AFP

“This visit early on underlines the close and heartfelt friendship between our countries and our citizens,” he added.

Steinmeier is due to give the royal couple a ceremonial welcome at the Brandenburg Gate and then host them as guests of honour at a state banquet.

The king will also make a speech in the German federal parliament, the Bundestag, a first for a British monarch, and will also meet refugees recently arrived from Ukraine.

With AFP

Originally published as King Charles III to deliver landmark address in first foreign visit as monarch