Day two of King Charles III's visit to Germany. (74). The English monarch gave an acclaimed speech in front of the German Bundestag. During his approximately 30-minute speech, Charles repeatedly switched from English to German, received a lot of applause and caused numerous laughs among the MPs and prominent guests such as the former Federal President Joachim Gauck (83) and Christian Wulff (63).
First, Charles thanked the Germans for their heartfelt condolences after the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II (1926-2022). "My family and I were deeply touched by Germany's reactions to the death of my mother [...]. All of this was a great comfort to us in times of great sadness," said Charles at the beginning of his speech in German.
The monarch also addressed the Ukraine war with moving words. "Countless lives are being destroyed, human dignity and freedom are being brutally trampled on, the security of Europe is just as threatened as our democratic values," said the 74-year-old. But "the world hasn't just stood by and watched," and Germans and Britons could "take courage from our unity."
"Germany and the UK have taken important leadership roles". According to Charles, this unity might have been unimaginable in the past.
In his speech, Charles addressed numerous aspects of the bond and common history of both countries. In addition, the monarch said humorously: "Of course there is also rivalry. I'm thinking of our football teams". Once again he had the laughs on his side with this statement.
Finally, Charles looked to the future with optimism, stating: "There are still many unwritten chapters in the long and special history of our two countries. Let us fill them with the pursuit of a better future".
Before his acclaimed speech in the German Bundestag, Charles and his wife Camilla (75) had signed the city of Berlin's Golden Book around 10:30 a.m. in the morning. Berlin's Governing Mayor Franziska Giffey (44) came to the Hotel Adlon for this occasion, where the British king is staying during the Berlin part of his trip to Germany.
Then it was on to the Chancellery, where Charles had a brief private conversation with Chancellor Olaf Scholz (64). The head of government then addressed warm words to his royal guest on Twitter and wrote, among other things: "I have great respect for your decades of commitment to environmental and climate protection".
After a short detour to the weekly organic and natural food market on Wittenbergplatz in western Berlin, where the king's wife Camilla is said to have tasted the honey offered, we continued to the German Bundestag for the monarch's aforementioned speech.
According to the official program, Charles' speech to the German Parliament will be followed by a visit to the Ukraine Arrivals Center in the building of the former Tegel Airport. Afterwards Charles visited soldiers of the German-British Pioneer Bridge Battalion 130 north of Berlin on his first trip abroad as king.
In the late afternoon, around 3:30 p.m., Charles is expected in the Brandenburg eco-village of Brodowin.
King's wife Camilla, on the other hand, keeps a few appointments separately from her husband in the course of the afternoon. Together with Elke Büdenbender (61), the wife of Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier (67), Camilla will visit the Refugio Berlin in the Berlin district of Neukölln, a project of the Berlin City Mission. After that, a visit to the traditional Komische Oper in Berlin is on the agenda for the wife of the English king.
