The Prince and Princess of Wales weren’t the only ones enjoying a day out watching sport as August got under way.
While William and Kate were at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, King Charles followed a specil tradition as he headed out to catch some sport.
The King was at the Mey Highland Games in Caithness, in northern Scotland.
King Charles is the Chieftan of the Games and his attendance follows a tradition started by Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother. The King was very close to his grandmother and his participation in the Games comes from her.
The Mey Highland Games were set up in 1970 to mark the 70th birthday of The Queen Mother. It was such a success, it became an annual event. When The Queen Mother died in 2002, her grandson, now King Charles, became Chieftan of the Games.
(Antares, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons)
In this role as Chieftan, The King watched many of the traditional sports being played including the tog of war and the Highland favourite, tossing the caber.
Dressed in a kilt, The King also enjoyed a performance of traditional highland dancing before tucking in, quite happily, to a dram of whiskey.
The Chieftan of the Games also spent times meeting some of those who have organised and run the event as well as a group of veterans, the Wounded Highlanders, who were taking part in the adaptive events at the competiion.
The Mey Highland Games are held on the first Saturday of August every year and form part of The King’s stay in Scotland. He is expected to head to Balmoral shortly for a summer break there with Queen Camilla.
Already in their diary is a meeting with new Prime Minister, And Burnham, and his wife, Mare-France van Hell. The King traditionally hosts the PM and their partner at Balmoral for a weekend in the summer.
Members of the Royal Family are also expected to join King Charles and Queen Camilla at Balmoral in the coming weeks. The Princess Royal is a big fan of the Scottish estate where she spent many happy summers growing up. The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh are also thought to be heading to the Aberdeenshire estate at some point.
(Wattie Cheung/ Kensington Palace)
It’s likely that the Prince and Princess of Wales will enjoy a break there, too, with their three children.
William and Kate headed to Scotland as August got under way to enjoy the penultimate day of the Commonwealth Games which are being held in Glasgow.
Prince George, 13, Princess Charlotte, 11, and eight year old Prince Louise also joined their parents to watch netball and cycling at the Games.
It’s the first official public engagement in Scotland for the young royals who enjoyed a full day out and showed particular support for the Welsh team with Prince Louis even wearing one of their team hats.
King Charles is expected to spend most of August at Balmoral and members of the Royal Family are likely to be there on September 8, the anniversary of the death of Queen Elizabeth II who passed away at the castle in 2022.
