The Mirror’s royal editor Russell Myers believes that over a few short days standing alongside President Trump in the United States, the King has paved the way for the US to mend its fractured relationship with the UK
When the original plans were drawn up for the King to take part in a state visit to the United States, the world was a very different place. America’s latest war in the Middle East was not a full blown cat, hope still existed that Russian aggression in Ukraine wouldn’t last and the ‘special relationship’ was not questioned.
How far we have come, or perhaps fallen, in a short space of time. As controversy on each and all of those issues grew into a chorus of discontent, politicians and campaigners on all sides of the divide called on the King to pull out of the visit.
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Many more wondered how our monarch could put himself at risk of being seen to cosy up to Donald Trump and his divisive administration, as they rained down hateful rhetoric on our Prime Minister and our country for not jumping to join the conflict in Iran.
Suddenly Downing Street’s request was seen a huge throw of the dice with much more at stake on all sides.
A senior palace who accompanied the King this week, said: “What looked like risk, challenge, was a phenomenal opportunity. One that was grasped in both hands by the King and we shall leave you to conclude what the outcome of that was.”
It’s an interesting take on events and tells you much more about the attitude of the King and his top advisors that possibly ever before.
This visit – ostensibly to celebrate and commemorate the 250th anniversary of American independence from British rule – had as many layers as controversial points to be considered.
The King’s speech to the Joint session of Congress, only the second time a British monarch had been invited to deliver an address and the first of a King, presented an almighty opportunity given current events.
Indeed Charles grasped it with both hands.
Talk of much needed collaboration in an ever fractured world, especially on peace in Ukraine and the Middle East , the importance of the NATO alliance that the US helped to create and Trump has threatened to destroy, and gentle reminders of our shared history, resulted in a dozen standing ovations.
If the reception was well received in the room, Trump’s statement that it was “the best speech he’d ever heard” in Congress speaks volumes. Yet we should not be surprised.
The King cares passionately about these issues, as well as the environment, climate change and leaving a world the next generation can be proud of. While these points may have been contentious to a Republican audience, they somehow turned into some of his biggest cheerleaders.
Palace sources were keen to mention they had been contacted by many political figures from both sides of the divide to heap praise on Charles.
The palace source added: “One, what the King says will always be guided by the truth. Two, it will be guided by conscience. And three, they’re all observable facts. Everything that is in that speech is an observable fact. And so, I think we felt very comfortable with the King speaking as he did.
“It’s a measure of how much he personally cares. The word historic is much overused and we always hesitate to use it in the palace but I think one could use that term for this visit.”
What I have witnessed this week has been Charles at his best. He is of course a very experienced diplomat, having served a 50 year apprenticeship for the top job.
While we are quite familiar with his passions and his wish to leave a legacy of justice and fairness for all, this mission was on another level.
Built up as a potential saviour to the special relationship, the stakes were certainly higher than expected than any other moment I have personally witnessed in almost a decade covering the work of the royal family.
The warmth of a relationship with a controversial President may cause some to feel uneasy, but this is soft power diplomacy in action. Yet the King and Buckingham Palace remain more modest in their assessment.
Of the King’s role, the source said: “This is a man who is absolutely driven by duty. driven by service.
“I wouldn’t say we’re there to change the relationship. It’s not a competition between the King and the government.
“The King is there to support the government, to help the government. It was at the government’s request, of course, that he undertook this visit. And the King and the Queen have been able to help the government in any way get the relationship perhaps more widely understood by a wider number of people without some of the noise of current affairs.”
Of the King and Queen’s relations with Trumps, the source said: “Given some of the issues that have presented themselves in the bilateral relationship, you’d think it might all be a bit tricky. But far from it.
“They all get on very well. And the warmth that you see in public is absolutely the warmth you see in private. They sort of howl with laughter. That meeting in the Oval Office, there was an awful lot of warmth and laughter.”
A new poll released on Saturday shows that the large majority of Britons believe the King did a good job in America – with 74% saying he handled the visit well, including 44% who say he handled it “very well”.
Just 4% think he handled it badly. Tory voters are especially likely to sing the King’s praises, at 88%, including 67% who think he did “very well” – however a solid majority among all parties take a positive view of the monarch’s efforts.
The history books will also show immediate results. People came out in their thousands to see Charles and Camilla, the historic ties and interest in our shared history were plainly evident.
Trump also bestowed a parting gift, by way of announcing removing tariffs on Scottish whisky as part of renewed collaboration between our nations. Whether this leads to a new relationship between Trump and Sir Keir Starmer’s government remains to be seen.
Those closet to the king admit, even if this visit has achieved marginal gains in that relationship, then “that’s a visit worth doing”.
A senior palace official on the trip said: “The King has really, really enjoyed it. It has been very, very busy. The crowds have been so huge, they have made us extremely late, but no one minds about that when you feel that you’re doing some good here, showing that this island matters to Britain, it matters to the King.”
So what now for Charles?
Having completed his “list of first” – a visit to Kenya in 2023, his first to a commonwealth country, a tour of Australia in 2024, his first to a realm, and now a marquee visit to the US under his belt.
The King is set to travel to the Caribbean later this year for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (Chogm). After the Prince and Princess of Wales’s controversial visit to the region in 2022, that may present its own challenges against a backdrop of Republicanism.
But Charles and the Palace can reflect that they will be ready for the challenge.
The source said of the King: “He’s not a man to dwell long on what some may consider yesterday’s successes, he is always looking towards tomorrow’s opportunities, so generally we’ve tried to encourage him to feel positive and he has about the way that the American leg has gone, but his mind is already on what he can achieve next rather than what he achieved this week.”
