King Charles III will take part in several of Washington’s most formal ceremonial rituals as he seeks to underscore the long-standing bond between the United Kingdom and the United States during a visit that comes amid political turbulence.
He will be the first British monarch to speak to the US Congress since his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, addressed lawmakers in 1991. Her remarks then emphasized the shared history and democratic values of both nations — themes Charles is expected to echo during what will likely be his most extensive public statements on a four-day trip timed to coincide with the United States’ 250th anniversary of independence from Britain.
Addresses to Congress are typically reserved for the world’s most prominent leaders, a list that has included Pope Francis, Vaclav Havel and Winston Churchill. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who earlier this year became the first sitting leader of his chamber to address the UK Parliament, attended a Washington garden party with the king on Monday and said he told Charles he would be “well received” in Congress.
Accompanied by Queen Camilla, Charles will begin a day that includes a White House meeting with President Donald Trump. The Oval Office encounter could produce the freewheeling, sometimes controversial exchanges that have marked Trump’s dealings with foreign leaders during his second term. Still, the monarch’s officially apolitical role and Trump’s fondness for the royal family may lower the risk of an awkward moment. Trump is expected to host a state banquet for the royal couple at the White House on Tuesday evening.
The visit arrives at a fraught moment for US-UK ties. Trump’s uneven relationship with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has become particularly tense as the president has sought international backing for actions related to Iran; Trump derided Starmer, saying “this is not Winston Churchill that we’re dealing with.” Trump has also imposed tariffs on the UK and warned of more levies, despite a recent Supreme Court ruling that complicates unilateral moves. He threatened last week to impose a “big tariff” on the UK if it does not repeal a digital services tax on US tech firms.
More broadly, some of Trump’s proposals and rhetoric — from suggesting the US consider annexing Greenland to comments that raised the possibility of abandoning NATO — have unsettled the traditional transatlantic alliance. He has repeatedly imposed tariffs on, and publicly taunted, Canada, a fellow Commonwealth nation.
Meanwhile, some members of Congress have urged Charles to meet with victims of Jeffrey Epstein while he is in the United States. There is no indication he will do so, even as the scandal surrounding the convicted sex offender has touched the king’s family; the report notes Charles’s brother was arrested in February on misconduct allegations he denies. Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., urged the king over the weekend to at least mention the matter during his congressional speech.
House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries criticized Republican policies Monday for straining the US-UK relationship and said he hoped the king’s visit would help “repair the damage that this administration has done to one of our most important allies in the world.”
Charles and Camilla arrived in Washington on Monday, held a tea with the president and first lady Melania Trump, and will continue their US trip later this week with stops in New York City and Virginia.
