What to know about King Charles’ visit to D.C.
King Charles III and Queen Camilla visited the White House for a state dinner hosted by President Trump and first lady Melania Trump. The two heads of state enthusiastically toasted the U.S.-U.K. alliance at the start of the dinner, despite some areas of disagreement between their countries.
Earlier Tuesday, the king addressed Congress, speaking about what he called the “truly unique” relationship between the U.K. and the U.S. and repeatedly stressing the importance of the alliance. He received a standing ovation when he said “executive power is subject to checks and balances.”
Charles’ address to lawmakers is only the second time in history a British monarch has delivered a speech to Congress, following a 1991 address by his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.
Charles and Camilla were greeted at the White House earlier with a formal state arrival ceremony welcoming them to the capital, complete with a military flyover and cannon salute. Mr. Trump cast the visit in both personal and historical terms, noting his mother’s Scottish ancestry and the long relationship between the U.S. and U.K.
The king and queen are in the U.S. to mark the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Mr. Trump said that “no tribute could be more appropriate” than their visit.
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Trump and Charles highlight U.S.-U.K. alliance — but challenges lurk in background
Both President Trump and King Charles III spoke about the U.S. and U.K.’s alliance in glowing terms at the start of Tuesday’s state dinner, though points of disagreement between the two countries remain.
The king called the alliance “indispensable,” highlighting the U.S.’s role in helping Europe rebuild after World War II and later setting up NATO — bringing up a delicate subject for Mr. Trump, who has long felt that NATO member countries do not spend enough money on their own defense and are overly reliant on the alliance.
He also said the countries should “reaffirm…the basis on which our partnership has been built,” in light of new challenges like shared foreign adversaries and the risks of new technologies.
Charles acknowledged the two countries have “had our moments of difficulty.” He brought up a visit his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, made to the U.S. in 1957, which he said was intended partially to “help put the special back into our relationship after a crisis in the Middle East,” referencing the Suez Crisis.
“Nearly 70 years on, it is hard to imagine anything like that happening today,” the king joked.
King Charles III And Queen Camilla State Visit Continues In Washington DC
King Charles III and President Trump give a toast in the East Room during an official state dinner at the White House on April 28, 2026.
Chris Jackson / Getty Images
One moment of difficulty between the two countries was prompted by the U.S.’s war with Iran, which the U.K. and many other NATO members have sought to avoid getting directly involved in. Mr. Trump has sharply criticized British Prime Minister Keir Starmer for not offering the U.S. more assistance.
Mr. Trump did not bring up that disagreement on Tuesday, and spoke positively during his toast about the U.S.-U.K. relationship and the two countries’ history of shared military operations. But the president referenced the Iran war at one point, saying it was going “very well.”
“Charles agrees with me even more than I do, we’re never going to let that opponent have a nuclear weapon,” he said, referring to Iran. “They know that, and they’ve known that right now very powerfully.”
9:19 AM / April 28, 2026
King presents gift of a bell from the HMS Trump
At the White House state dinner, King Charles presented President Trump with a gift: A bell that hung aboard a World War II-era British submarine called the HMS Trump. The inscription on the bell reads “Trump 1944.”
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President Trump and Britain’s King Charles III smile beside the original bell from the H.M.S. Trump, a World War II-era submarine inscribed “Trump 1944”, a gift from the king, during a state dinner at the White House on April 28, 2026.
Henry Nicholls /AFP via Getty Images
The king applauded the U.S.’s “audacious and visionary act of self-determination” in its fight for independence from the British Empire. And he said he was “here to renew an indispensable alliance.”
“Our people have fought and fallen together in defense of the values we cherish,” the king said.
