King Charles seemed to have demonstrated the patience of a saint, or at least, the ability to keep his cool in public, after being spotted subtly trying to guide Donald Trump during his second UK state visit.
The ceremonial welcome at Windsor Castle yesterday (September 17) saw Charles invite the 45th & 47th US president to walk ahead of him as they inspected the Guard of Honour.
It was a bold move considering the subtle drama back in 2018 when Trump strolled in front of the late Queen Elizabeth II, earning a wave of criticism for ignoring royal protocol.
This time, though, Charles made sure history didn’t repeat itself.
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Clearly caught up in the pomp and pageantry, Trump stopped several times to chat with guardsmen and even thanked the commanding officer for the honour.
But, while it was all smiles on the outside, it turns out the King’s body language was saying something very different.
According to expert Judi James, speaking to the Daily Mail, there was a flicker of what she described as 'a moment of suppressed tetchiness' as Charles followed closely behind.
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She explained: “Despite walking a very emphatic pace behind Trump as he inspects the troops, there is a moment of suppressed tetchiness from Charles as he realises there is a long conversation going on which might delay the schedule.
"The King edges up to Trump, his hands clenching and unclenching in a gesture of impatience, and he places a hand on Trump’s back to get him moving along again.”
Adding to the pressure, timings for the day were already running late. Trump had rocked up at 12.16pm, well behind the planned arrival time of 11.55am, and Charles himself was only seen arriving at 12.02pm.
Lip reader Nicola Hickling also claimed that during the unexpected wait, the King appeared to mutter the words 'go away' to someone nearby — though who exactly he was directing that towards remains unclear.
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James also pointed out that Charles seemed determined to avoid the kind of awkwardness the Queen faced years ago when Trump blocked her path.
She said: “Fascinating to see how deftly Charles dealt with the previous problem that caused ridicule for Trump in the UK when he was accused (unfairly) of walking in front of the late Queen, forcing her to pop around behind him to catch up as he inspected the guards.”
Instead, Charles went into full diplomat mode.
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James explained: “This time we can see Charles peering at Trump’s face as he holds both his arms out to ‘present’ the president to the Master at Arms then performing a very emphatic ushering ritual with one arm out and the other behind Trump’s back to steer him into place and to make no mistake of the fact that Charles is going to walk along behind."
And just to really hammer home the point, Charles even gave what James described as 'a solicitous bow as Trump walks ahead, which is an incredibly unusual act of ‘self-lowering’ of the King’s status to raise the status of his guest'.
In short, it might have looked like a picture of royal composure on the surface, but Charles’ clenched fists told their own story.
Topics: Donald Trump, Royal Family, King Charles III
Ben Williams