HAMILTON, Bermuda – King Charles III spent a day in the British island territory of Bermuda on May 1 after a high-stakes visit to the United States where he sought to heal strained ties between Washington and London.
It was the first visit by a British king to Bermuda in its 400-year history, King Charles said – a history that involved making the archipelago a maritime hub of Britain’s transatlantic slave trade, which the monarchy has been pressured to address.
The King toured a museum exhibit on the slave trade and watched a dance with roots in the era.
“I’m told, to my amazement, it is also the first time in Bermuda’s 400-year history, the islands have actually received a reigning king,” King Charles said during a reception at Government House in Bermuda’s capital of Hamilton.
“So I’m terribly sorry it has taken so long.”
The King was visiting the archipelago without Queen Camilla, who had accompanied him to the United States.
Early in the day the British monarch greeted a line of schoolchildren, pausing to chat with them, on the steps of the whitewashed St Peter’s Church in St George’s, the Atlantic Ocean territory’s first English settlement.
“Thank you for coming,” said one crowd member who held a miniature Union Jack flag.
“Get home safe,” said another member of the hundreds-strong crowd gathered in King’s Square.
One well-wisher wore a plastic crown speckled with imitation jewels as she filmed the gathering on her cell phone after a 21-gun salute.
King Charles received a warm welcome during his visit to Sandys Parish in Bermuda on May 1.
PHOTO: AFP
King Charles received a Royal Salute and the Royal Bermuda Regiment’s band played the national anthem before setting a more relaxed tone with Bob Marley and the Wailers’ song Jamming.
In Sandys Parish, the royal party was treated to a performance by Gombeys – dancers who maintain a folklore tradition with African, Caribbean and Native American influences.
Their vibrant costumes evolved from the era of slavery, when performances were restricted and painted masks helped conceal dancers’ identities.
The King also visited Trunk Island, an island in Bermuda’s Harrington Sound where the local zoological society runs education programs.
Long a vocal conservationist, King Charles appeared “right at home” on the island, Bermuda Zoological Society spokeswoman Robyn Bardgett told AFP, adding it was clear his passion for the environment was “completely genuine”.
The King asked a society staff member “are you getting the message through?”.
He took “real time to chat with them about what (members) are learning about coral reefs”, Bardgett added.
Charles is scheduled to depart for the United Kingdom on May 2.
The four-day US visit was largely seen as a success, with President Donald Trump serving as a solicitous host who honoured the royal couple with a white-tie banquet at the White House.
“He’s a great king – the greatest king, in my book,” Mr Trump told reporters as they said farewell.
Soon after, Mr Trump announced he was removing tariffs on Scottish whisky “in honour” of King Charles and Queen Camilla.
The centrepiece of the US trip was King Charles’s speech on April 28 to Congress, the first by a British monarch since Queen Elizabeth II in 1991.
The address was warmly received, even as King Charles touched on subjects from climate change and the need for restraints on presidential power to the importance of NATO and defence of Ukraine – sensitive issues for the US President.
The 77-year-old King skirted around tensions between Mr Trump and Prime Minister Keir Starmer over Britain’s refusal to join the war against Iran, insisting the partnership between the two countries was “born out of dispute, but no less strong for it”. AFP
