At the White House state dinner, King Charles III presented a personal and symbolic gift to President Donald Trump: the original bell from HMS Trump, a British-built Second World War submarine. Unveiling the bell as he addressed the gathering, the king used the moment to highlight defence ties — naming NATO and AUKUS — and to recall the submarine launched from a UK shipyard in 1944 that later served mainly with the 4th Submarine Squadron in Australia. He said the bell should stand as a testament to shared history and a bright joint future, then added a light-hearted quip that drew laughter and applause. President Trump publicly praised the gesture during the white-tie event.
Earlier in a private exchange, Buckingham Palace said the king gave the president a framed facsimile of the 1879 design plans for the Resolute Desk, the historic desk that sits in the Oval Office. The original drawings, held by the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, show the desk’s front elevation, top and projection. The Resolute Desk was made from timber salvaged from HMS Resolute; the vessel was recovered and returned to Britain in a gesture of goodwill and later broken up, with three desks crafted from its timbers by William Evenden at the Royal Navy Dockyard in Chatham. Queen Victoria presented the completed desk to President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1880.
Queen Camilla followed tradition by presenting First Lady Melania Trump with a brooch by British designer Fiona Rae. A Central Saint Martins graduate and long-standing enamel specialist supported early on by the Prince’s Trust, Rae was awarded a royal warrant by the king in 2024. Her work blends traditional enamelling with modern techniques and computer-aided design.
The palace also detailed items exchanged by the American side. President Trump gave King Charles a custom facsimile of a 1785 letter from John Adams to John Jay, in which Adams describes his reception by King George III when he served as the first US ambassador to Britain — a symbolic reminder of reconciliation and the long UK–US relationship, coinciding with events marking the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. First Lady Melania Trump presented Queen Camilla with six Tiffany English ‘King’ sterling silver teaspoons, each engraved with the queen’s cypher, and a jar of White House honey — a nod to Camilla’s interest in beekeeping and to shared appreciation for craftsmanship and sustainability.
Following the Washington events, the royal tour will continue to New York for commemorations of the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
