French State Visit: King Charles to host Macrons at Buckingham Palace in 17-year first

Royal fans are going to get a tiara moment sooner than expected with the announcement today of a French state visit.

King Charles will welcome French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron to Buckingham Palace in July.

It will be the first State Visit to the UK from France since President Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife Carla Bruni in 2008, who were guests of Queen Elizabeth II.

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While the full program is still to be announced by the palace, the three-day visit from July 8-10 is sure to include a state banquet.

This means sashes and tiaras for female guests and a dapper white tie dress code for the men.

The last time we saw Catherine, Princess of Wales wearing a tiara and sash was the state banquet for South Korea’s prime minister in 2023.

The Macrons will stay at Windsor Castle, near Prince William and Kate’s home of Adelaide Cottage, while Buckingham Palace undergoes extensive reservicing works.

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King Charles and Queen Camilla travelled to France in September 2023, marking the new sovereign’s first state visit after his coronation in May that year.

The visit, an invitation from the Macrons, resulted in King Charles becoming the first British monarch to address the French Senate.

Speaking to French lawmakers in Paris on the second day of that visit, Charles said the alliance between Britain and France was more important than ever as he recalled how they had worked together to defeat Nazi Germany.

The visit highlighted the historic ties between Britain and its closest European neighbour.

The trip came after years of sometimes prickly relations strained by Britain’s exit from the European Union and disagreements over the growing number of migrants crossing the English Channel on small boats.

King Charles was a frequent visitor to France before becoming monarch, making 35 official visits to the country as heir to the throne.

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The dates mean that Macron will likely beat Trump to London.

King Charles in February invited Trump to make an unprecedented second state visit to Britain, but a date hasn’t yet been set.

– Reported with Associated Press.

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