King Charles III now set to visit France in September
The new official visit comes after the previously-planned trip was cancelled at the height of the anti-pension reform protest movement
King Charles III will now visit France this September. As the Prince of Wales, Charles made many official trips to France, including this one with Camilla in 2006, for a commemoration of the Battle of the Somme
Marc Burleigh / Shutterstock
King Charles III is set to visit France in September this year, six months after his previously planned visit was cancelled due to the pension reform protests.
King Charles and his wife Queen Camilla had been due to visit France from March 26-29. However, on March 24, this was cancelled due to fears of unrest surrounding the action against pension reform, which was then at its peak.
The British and French governments made the decision jointly, the Elysée said at the time.
King Charles had not yet been crowned, but the visit had been set to be his first official trip to Europe since becoming king. It was described as a ‘chance to rebuild the fractured relationship’ between France and the UK.
Read more: ‘King’s visit to France chance to rebuild fractured relationship’
Charles had been due to make several visits in Paris - including to a state dinner at the chateau de Versailles (Yvelines) - and in Bordeaux (Gironde) before moving on to visit Germany. Instead, the trip took place in Germany only.
Charles reportedly told members of the public that the postponement of the French trip had been “very sad.”
At the time of the original cancellation, President Emmanuel Macron said that he hoped the visit would only be postponed until “the start of the summer”. Yet, news outlets are now reporting September as the new date.
The new monarch’s coronation took place on May 6, 2023 at Westminster Abbey, London
Charles is the oldest person ever to take the British throne, having become king at the age of 73, after his mother Queen Elizabeth II died at the age of 96 on September 8, 2022. In contrast, Elizabeth was 25 when she became queen in 1952.
King Charles III has a long history with France, having already made 34 official visits to the country during his time as the Prince of Wales.
Read also: The places in France where British Royals have lived and holidayed
The new visit will take place just days before another high-profile visit, that of Pope Francis I, who is set to lead a mass at the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille on September 23.
Read also
Charles III coronation: What do the French think of the UK’s new king?
‘Bringing back monarchy to France may not be a ridiculous idea’
Nine million French viewers for Coronation’s ‘royal fête des voisins’
