Donald Trump’s latest state visit to the United Kingdom unfolded as a spectacle of royal ceremony and diplomatic choreography, offering both the former U.S. president and his British hosts a carefully orchestrated opportunity to advance their respective agendas. The two-day visit, which began on September 17, 2025, was marked by an abundance of pageantry, from the largest guard of honor in living memory to an opulent state dinner at Windsor Castle. Both sides, it appears, got exactly what they wanted—Trump basked in regal splendor, while King Charles and the U.K. government showcased the monarchy’s enduring role in international relations.
According to the Associated Press, Trump described the experience as “one of the highest honors of my life,” relishing every moment of the grandeur that surrounded him. The visit’s ceremonial highlights included a carriage procession through the royal grounds in the enclosed Irish State Coach, a military parade featuring 1,300 troops and 120 horses, and a dazzling air show. For Trump, whose affinity for spectacle is well documented, the event seemed tailor-made—a “made-for-television state visit for a made-for-television president,” as constitutional expert Craig Prescott told CBC.
But the benefits were not one-sided. The U.K. government, eager to reinforce the so-called “special relationship,” hoped the visit would smooth the way for stronger diplomatic and trade ties. The Royal Family, meanwhile, performed one of its traditional functions: acting as a symbol of stability and continuity on the world stage. Royal historian Justin Vovk told CBC that the event was “kind of a commercial for the monarchy in the sense of it showed people what the monarchy does in the realm of foreign affairs, personal diplomacy and international relations.”
Behind the scenes, organizers appeared willing to bend the usual protocols to accommodate Trump’s preferences. Prescott noted that “we seemingly … wanted to do everything we could to do what the president wanted,” with the U.K. government and royal household “throwing out much of the template” for such events. The honor guard was larger than usual, and the parade route was shifted away from public streets to the privacy of royal grounds—moves designed to ensure both security and spectacle.
For all the anticipation and scrutiny, the visit passed largely without major gaffes or controversy. Protests were minimal, and both Trump and King Charles kept their speeches at the state dinner notably restrained. “They played it very conservatively,” Vovk observed. “With the King, not surprising. The monarch typically makes very generic diplomatic comments in these kinds of speeches.” Trump, for his part, kept his remarks understated, focusing on themes of friendship and shared values.
King Charles’s speech at the banquet included a touch of humor and a nod to the enduring bond between the two countries. “In fact, had the media succeeded in the 1970s in their own attempt at deepening the special relationship, I myself might have been married off within the Nixon family,” Charles quipped, before reflecting on his “over 20 visits to the U.S.” and the “close ties between the British and American people.”
The careful choreography extended to every detail, from seating arrangements at the state dinner—carefully negotiated by Downing Street, the White House, and the royal household—to the activities of the First Lady. According to BBC, Queen Camilla took Melania Trump on a private tour of Windsor Castle’s royal library and the famous Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House, while Melania later joined the Princess of Wales to host Scouts at Frogmore House.
Amid the diplomatic theater, the Royal Family’s calendar was busy with other significant events. Prince Harry returned to the U.K. during the same period, marking his first meeting with King Charles in almost two years. After years of public criticism and estrangement—most notably through his memoir, Spare—Harry’s visit was focused on charitable causes. He met with children facing serious health challenges, participated in a balloon swordfight with a young girl, and announced donations from the Archwell Foundation to Children in Need and Imperial College London’s Centre for Blast Injury Studies. These efforts, as Prescott told CBC, highlighted Harry’s enduring commitment to charity work, though “he hasn’t quite carved out the equivalent role in the U.S.”
Following his U.K. engagements, Harry made a surprise trip to Ukraine, where he told The Guardian that his “conscience is clear” after publishing his memoir and insisted he had not aired his “dirty linen in public.” The remark, Vovk noted, “hasn’t played well with the British public,” suggesting Harry “still doesn’t seem to grasp the scope of his actions and the impact they have had beyond just him.” While Harry’s meeting with his father offered a glimmer of reconciliation, there was no meeting with Prince William, and experts cautioned that any broader familial rapprochement would take time.
The Royal Family was also brought together by a somber occasion: the funeral of Katharine, Duchess of Kent. Held at Westminster Cathedral just days before September 21, the service marked the first Catholic funeral for a Royal Family member in nearly five centuries. Vovk told CBC, “The last time we had [a Catholic funeral] for a member of the Royal Family in good standing was … Mary Tudor in 1558.” The event, which was private and not televised, was attended by King Charles, Prince William, and Catherine, Princess of Wales. Queen Camilla was absent due to acute sinusitis, and Prince Andrew’s attendance drew media attention given the lasting fallout from his association with Jeffrey Epstein.
Prescott remarked that Andrew “is, in terms of the public face of the monarchy, persona non grata, but will attend family events like this.” Vovk was more blunt: “I just really hope that somebody is able to convince the decision-makers that they have to distance themselves from Andrew, because the Epstein controversies are not going away, the quest for justice is not going away, and if they are not careful, Andrew could be the iceberg that sinks the ship.”
The funeral’s lack of controversy, despite its historical significance, underscored how much the monarchy’s relationship with the church and the public has evolved. “The fact that [a Catholic royal funeral] is able to happen controversy-free really speaks to how much the monarchy’s role and its relationship with the church and the public’s view of the monarch as defender of the faith has shifted significantly even in the past 100 years,” Vovk observed.
As the Royal Family navigates both public spectacle and private challenges, the events of this September offered a vivid snapshot of an institution balancing tradition with adaptation. Whether hosting world leaders, supporting charitable causes, or honoring its own, the monarchy continues to find new ways to remain relevant in a rapidly changing world.