King to address Congress on US trip marking ‘shared history’: palace

King Charles will address the US Congress on his first state visit as monarch. Photo / Getty Images

King Charles will give a landmark address to the US Congress on his first state visit this month, marking “shared history” and deep ties.

Making his first state visit to the US as monarch from April 27, Charles will address lawmakers from both chambers, accompanied by Queen Camilla, the royal communications team said.

Buckingham Palace said the four-day visit would “recognise the shared history of our two nations” as well as the “breadth” of current ties, with “deep people-to-people connections”.

The King had faced calls from some British politicians for his US trip to be cancelled or delayed amid open disagreements between Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer over the Iran war.

Starmer on Monday insisted the “very important” visit would go ahead, saying bonds built by the monarchy can “reach through the decades in a situation like this”.

US President Donald Trump has posted on his Truth Social platform that the visit “will be TERRIFIC”.

US Speaker Mike Johnson announced Charles would give an address to Congress on April 28, but Buckingham Palace did not give exact dates for the scheduled speech.

‘Tea and state dinner’

Charles will be the first British monarch to speak to Congress since his mother, Queen Elizabeth, in 1991, shortly after the Gulf War.

While in Washington, the King and Queen will have tea with Trump and the first lady, Melania, and attend a state dinner and a military review.

The royal couple hosted Trump for a lavish state visit in September, including dinner at Windsor Castle, a flyover and military parades.

That was an unprecedented second state visit for Trump, who was also hosted in 2019 by the late Queen Elizabeth. She last made a state visit to the US in 2007.

Charles, 77, has faced a major crisis over his brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who is under UK police investigation over revelations about his links to the late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

A US lawmaker and the family of Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre, who died by suicide last year, have urged Charles to meet survivors of his crimes during the state visit.

But a source told Britain’s Press Association (PA) news agency that “our position is clear” that such a meeting “will not be possible”, citing the risk it could “impact on [police] inquiries, or the proper course of the law”.

After Washington, Charles and Camilla will travel to New York, where they will meet first responders and families of those killed in the 9/11 attacks, nearly 25 years ago.

The King will also meet business leaders and attend a reception showcasing cultural links and his charity, The King’s Trust, which supports vulnerable young people.

The royal couple will then go to the southeastern state of Virginia, where some of the first English colonies were established.

They will attend a street “block party” there to celebrate the anniversary of the 1776 Declaration of Independence.

They will then go to Bermuda on May 1 for Charles’ first trip there as monarch. The last royal visit to the archipelago was by Elizabeth in 2009.

-Agence France-Presse