Royal Encounters: King Charles III's Decades-Long History of US Visits

The British monarch arrives for his first official state visit as reigning king, continuing a tradition of American engagements that spans nearly five decades.

King Charles III is set to undertake what may prove to be his most significant journey to the United States since ascending to the throne. Beginning Monday, the monarch will conduct an official state visit encompassing stops in Washington DC, Virginia, and New York, before proceeding to Bermuda. This marks the first visit by a reigning British monarch to American soil in approximately two decades, the last such occasion being Queen Elizabeth II's 2007 visit at the invitation of President George W Bush.

A Long Record of American Connections

Throughout his adult life, the king has maintained a presence in the United States, building relationships with political leaders, celebrities, and public figures across multiple administrations and decades.

Early Official Visits

Charles first visited the US in 1970 at age 21, when he met President Richard Nixon in the White House Oval Office. During that same trip, he attended a baseball game at Washington DC's RFK Stadium alongside the children of the president and vice-president, and was joined by his sister, Princess Anne.

The prince returned to California in 1974 during a naval deployment to San Diego, where he met Governor Ronald Reagan in Palm Springs—a meeting that preceded Reagan's later presidency by six years. That Los Angeles visit also introduced him to actress Barbra Streisand on the set of the Warner Bros film Funny Lady, beginning a friendship that would endure for decades.

Growing Public Profile

A 1977 campus visit to Cleveland, Ohio, drew significant attention from protesters opposing British involvement in Northern Ireland. That same year, an encounter with actors during a department store visit in Los Angeles captured moments of levity between the royal and his hosts.

In 1980, Charles traveled to Florida to participate in a polo match at the Palm Beach Polo Club—an activity that featured prominently in his American itineraries. The outing proved eventful when he subsequently required hospital treatment for heat exhaustion and dehydration.

A 1985 shopping trip to Springfield, Virginia, found the prince browsing with Princess Diana as she examined jewelry, while in 1986, the mayor of Austin, Texas, presented Charles with a cowboy hat during his visit to the city.

Recent State Visits

In 2005, marking his first official trip following his divorce and subsequent marriage to Camilla, Charles visited the White House for an official dinner with President George W Bush. During that same visit, he met businessman Donald Trump and his wife Melania at a reception hosted by the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. The trip also included an address to students at Georgetown University in Washington DC.

A decade later, in 2015, Charles met with President Barack Obama in the White House Oval Office during another visit to the country.