AFP — A guard of honour and a lavish banquet awaited them in London on Tuesday when King Charles III was due to welcome the Emperor and Empress at the start of a three-day state visit to Britain.
The couple, who arrived on Saturday and carried out informal engagements over the weekend, were due to be received by the British monarch and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, at Horse Guards Parade in central London around midday.
The three-day extravaganza will begin with an imperial salute, a gun firing and the playing of the two countries’ national anthems, while Emperor Naruhito, 64, and Prince Charles, 75, review a guard of honour.
Members of the Royal Family then board a horse-drawn carriage for the short journey to Buckingham Palace.
TOP SHOT – Britain’s King Charles III and Japan’s Emperor Naruhito march in a horse-drawn carriage down The Mall in London, escorted by mounted police, on the first day of their three-day official visit to the UK on June 25, 2024. The Japanese imperial couple have arrived in the UK for a three-day official visit hosted by King Charles III. (Photo: Paul Ellis/AFP) (Photo: Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images)
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM – JUNE 25: King Charles III and Emperor Naruhito attend a welcoming ceremony for Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako by King Charles III and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, during their official visit to the UK at Horse Guards Parade in London, United Kingdom on June 25, 2024. (Photo by Samir Hussain/WireImage)
The king’s visit will be his first official visit since it was revealed in February that he has cancer, and he will then take the emperor and empress to a special exhibition of the royal collection relating to Japan.
They will then travel to Westminster Abbey to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
The highlight of the state visit to the UK will be a state dinner at Buckingham Palace, which will be held in the evening.
– Banquet –
The state visit took place just a week before the UK general election, and some typical political elements, such as a visit to Downing Street, were omitted in accordance with neutrality rules.
But Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who is widely expected to win the July 4 election, and Labour leader Keir Starmer will attend the dinner along with Prince Charles, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall and the Japanese imperial family.
Attention is focused on whether Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, wife of the heir to the throne, Prince William, will make a public appearance. Catherine’s last public appearance was in December last year due to her cancer treatment.
Prince Charles has returned to limited royal duties in recent months after doctors said they were “very encouraged” by his recovery.
The King’s sister, Princess Anne, was also due to attend but is unable to do so as she is recovering in hospital after being hit by a horse and suffering a concussion and minor injuries.
(From left) Home Secretary James Cleverley, Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary David Cameron arrive at a welcoming ceremony at Horse Guards Parade in London for the official visit of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako to the UK on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (Photo by Geoff Moore/PA Images via Getty Images)
Britain’s King Charles III and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, stand with Japan’s Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako at the Royal Pavilion during a welcoming ceremony at Horse Guards Parade in London on the first day of their three-day official visit to the UK on June 25, 2024. The Japanese royal couple arrived in the UK for a three-day official visit hosted by King Charles III. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Pool/AFP) (Photo by Chris Jackson/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
This visit will be the Emperor’s second official state visit since ascending to the throne in 2019, following his visit to Indonesia last year.
It was originally scheduled to take place in 2020 and would have been the Emperor’s first overseas visit since ascending to the throne, but was postponed due to the pandemic.
This will be Prince Charles’ third state visit since he became King following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth, in September 2022.
Emperor Naruhito will visit the Francis Crick Institute, Britain’s leading biomedical research centre, on Wednesday, and in the evening the Mayor of London and London City Council will host a dinner for the crown prince.
– ‘Nostalgic Memories’ –
The Emperor and Empress will be formally farewelled by the King and Queen at Buckingham Palace on Thursday morning, before attending the “Japan: From Myth to Manga” exhibition at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum.
The Emperor will then make a private visit to Windsor Castle and lay a wreath at the grave of the late Queen, whose funeral he attended nearly two years ago.
Queen Elizabeth, who began her 70-year reign in 1952, has hosted two state visits to Japan during her reign: by Emperor Showa in 1971 and her eldest son, Emperor Akihito (father of Emperor Naruhito), in 1998.
Ahead of the visit, the Crown Prince said that when he studied in the UK in the 1980s, members of the British royal family treated him “like family”.
Emperor Naruhito recalled being invited to Balmoral Castle in Scotland for a few days during his two years at Oxford University.
“I have very fond memories of the Queen driving me to a barbecue and Prince Philip himself driving the carriage to show me around,” he said at a rare press conference.
The Japanese couple are due to fly to Oxford, west London, on Friday from where they will fly home.
