The King hosted a gathering of Governors-General from the Commonwealth Realms at Buckingham Palace on Saturday as world leaders begin to arrive in London for the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.
The Governor Generals of Canada, Australia, and New Zealand were in attendance; as were their counterparts in Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahama, Belize, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the Solomon Islands, and Tuvalu.
King Charles was joined by Queen Camilla, the Prince and Princess of Wales, the Earl and Countess of Wessex, the Princess Royal and Sir Timothy Laurence, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, the Duke of Kent, and Princess Alexandra.
The role of a Governor General in each of the Commonwealth Realms is to act as a representative of the Sovereign in their respective countries. By law, King Charles is king of each of the Commonwealth Realms, but he does not act without advice of ministers within each country. The Governor General can exercise executive authority on behalf of the Sovereign with consultation.
The reception and lunch at Buckingham Palace comes near the tail-end of a whirlwind period of engagements for the new king and his family. Earlier on Saturday, King Charles held a meeting with the Defence Chiefs of Staff, which includes the First Sea Lord, the Chiefs of the Air, General and Defence Staff, and the Commander of United Kingdom Strategic Command.
Then, he and Prince William, the Prince of Wales, met with emergency workers at the Metropolitan Police’s Special Operations Room to thank them for their help in planning and executing security procedures for Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral.
Later in the afternoon, following the lunch for the realm Governor Generals, King Charles met with Prime Ministers from several realms, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern of New Zealand, Prime Minister Andrew Holness of Jamaica, Prime Minister Philip Davis of the Bahamas, and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of Australia.
Prime Minister Davis of the Bahamas tweeted about his meeting with King Charles, saying: “Meeting with His Majesty The King today at Buckingham Palace was a pleasure. Our conversation was a great reflection on the relationship the Royal Family has shared with the people of The Bahamas. I expressed my personal condolences and well wishes to King Charles III.”
