ROYAL FAMILY
What is King Charles III’s new title?
The king is putting on a hat previously worn by his mother, Queen Elizabeth III.
King Charles III has a brand new title, a responsibility that once belonged to his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II.
King Charles’ newest responsibility
Buckingham Palace announced Tuesday that King Charles is the new Colonel-in-Chief of the Corps of Royal Engineers, and it appears to be more than a figurehead position.
The king met with the chief royal engineer to discuss an agenda of high importance, as the monarch will meet with people from the Germany-based Corps of Royal Engineers upon his trip to Brandenburg on Wednesday.
The title was previously held by Queen Elizabeth, who passed away in September at the age of 96.
The Queen last visited the Corps of Royal Engineers in 2016 at their Brompton Barracks base for the occasion of the corps’ 300th anniversary, where she conducted an inspection of troops from the State Review Range Rover.
The palace’s statement
The palace released the announcement with a photo of King Charles with Chief Royal Engineer, Lieutenant General Sir Tyrone Richard Urch taken at Buckingham Palace, and a statement about King Charles taking on the title. The statement also highlighted the significance of the regiment.
“Commonly known as the Sappers, the Corps was founded in 1716 and gained the prefix Royal in 1787,” the royal statement read. “They operate at the forefront of innovation to provide global military engineering and technical support to the British Armed Forces and their allies.”
A Eurotrip without France?
As the king prepares to meet representatives of the corps in Germany, his plans to travel to France this week have been canceled. The palace had planned for King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla to travel to France and Germany in an attempt to strengthen Britain’s ties with Europe.
The couple was scheduled to leave for France on Sunday, but the trip was canceled due to widespread and increasingly violent protests across the country.
French people are protesting president Emmanuel Macron’s decision to raise the retirement age by two years, among other related issues.
“The King and The Queen Consort’s State Visit to France has been postponed,” Buckingham Palace wrote in a statement published Friday. “Their Majesties greatly look forward to the opportunity to visit France as soon as dates can be found.”