King Charles III's visit to America has seen encounters with the Trumps, speeches to Congress, a visit to New York hosted by Zohran Mamdani, and endless discussions about the potential restoration of the special relationship between the United States and United Kingdom. Donald Trump may still be agitated by Sir Keir Starmer's lack of help in the Iran War, but it seems the King has made a tremendous effort to smooth things over.
Plenty of viral moments have been borne out of this visit. From the revolutionary soldiers waiting to greet King Charles and Queen Camilla, to a few playful teases about the United States and United Kingdom's storied history from King Charles. Most of these moments have made their way onto the internet, but it seems the consensus is that the British King held his own in foreign territory, and reminded Trump that keeping friends is just as important as beating enemies.
King Charles III made jokes about how if Britain hadn't been around centuries ago, all Americans today would be speaking French, a comment that drew the attention of French President Emmanuel Macron. He also said that the East Wing of the White House looked quite reminiscent of Buckingham Palace. Even with all the jokes, King Charles III maintained a great amount of decorum, gifting Trump an original bell from the WW2-era vessel the HMS Trump, saying that if he's ever in need of his UK allies, he just needs to give them a ring.
"With a president known for his unpredictability and fresh out of an assassination attempt, the King managed to land subtle blow after blow on a smiling president, upholding Ukraine, Nato, climate change, the Royal Navy, and the limits to presidential authority," said historian and biographer Sir Anthony Seldon, speaking with the BBC about the Royal visit.
