King Charles III and Queen Camilla have officially arrived in the United States for a major four-day state visit, marking one of the most significant overseas tours of the King’s reign so far.
The royal couple landed at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on Monday afternoon, where they were welcomed by representatives from both the British and American governments. Children from UK military families based in the US also greeted the King and Queen with flowers during the arrival ceremony.
Following their landing, the couple travelled to Washington, D.C. for a private meeting and afternoon tea with Donald Trump and Melania Trump at the White House.
The presidential couple welcomed the King and Queen outside the South Portico before posing together for photographers. During the meeting, President Trump reportedly pointed out a tree believed to have been planted by Queen Elizabeth II during her 1991 state visit to the US.
The visit also included a tour of the White House gardens and its beekeeping project, an initiative that has existed at the presidential residence since 2009. The Queen was shown a specially designed beehive shaped like the White House itself.
Later in the evening, the King and Queen attended a large garden reception at the British Ambassador’s residence — an event described as the first of its kind hosted during a British monarch’s visit since the era of George VI in 1939.
During the reception, the royal couple viewed a ceremonial time capsule created to celebrate the upcoming 250th anniversary of American independence. King Charles is expected to contribute both a commemorative Royal Mint coin and a written message to the project.
The capsule will eventually be buried near the Washington Monument and remain sealed until the year 2276.
More than 600 guests attended the event, including figures from politics, charitable organisations and industries connected to causes championed by the King and Queen, such as sustainability, domestic violence awareness and the arts.
The visit continues this week with an intensive schedule of engagements, including a historic address by King Charles to a joint session of Congress — an honour previously given only once before to a British monarch, by Queen Elizabeth II.
After Washington, the King and Queen are expected to travel to New York and Virginia before the King continues onward to Bermuda for his first official visit to a British Overseas Territory since becoming monarch.
