WASHINGTON — King Charles III reaffirmed the United Kingdom and the United States’ long “special” relationship Tuesday, calling it a "story of reconciliation, renewal and remarkable partnership" born out of "bitter divisions of 250 years ago."
In a rare speech to Congress, he marked the landmark anniversary of America's independence from British rule, and he nodded to his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, who addressed Congress from under the same “watchful eye of the Statue of Freedom above us” 35 years ago.
“The story of the United Kingdom and the United States is, at its heart, a story of reconciliation, renewal and remarkable partnership,” said the king, who was interrupted by several standing ovations during his 28-minute address.
“From the bitter divisions of 250 years ago, we forged a friendship that has grown into one of the most consequential alliances in human history.”
The transatlantic alliance has been strained by President Donald Trump’s war against Iran. Trump has lashed out at British Prime Minister Keir Starmer for not having joined the U.S. in the initial attack on Iran, disparaging him as “no Winston Churchill.”
Trump has had a much closer personal relationship with Charles and Queen Camilla, who hosted him at a state dinner at Windsor Castle in September. Trump and first lady Melania Trump will host a state dinner for the royals at the White House on Tuesday night.
Charles’ remarks included no direct references to the Iran war, noting only that “we meet in times of great uncertainty; in times of conflict from Europe to the Middle East which pose immense challenges for the international community.”
Underscoring the "common democratic, legal and social traditions" of Britain and the U.S., he said the two nations have always found a way to "come together."
"And by Jove, Mr. Speaker, when we have found that way to agree, what great change is brought about — not just for the benefit of our peoples, but of all peoples," Charles said, with Camilla seated to his left.
"This, I believe, is the special ingredient in our relationship."
At the outset Tuesday, Charles referred to the assassination attempt at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner Saturday night. The royal couple called the Trumps to express their concern and sympathies after the shooting, a source familiar with the matter told NBC News this week.
“Let me say with unshakeable resolve: Such acts of violence will never succeed," Charles said. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., who was nearly killed in a 2017 mass shooting, was one of the first to stand and applaud.
But perhaps the most enthusiastic applause line came when the king noted that the Magna Carta is cited in at least 160 U.S. Supreme Court cases and is "the foundation of the principle that executive power is subject to checks and balances."
Democrats and Republicans alike stood and cheered that line.
Charles did not address the Jeffrey Epstein files, whose fallout has shaken politics in both Britain and the U.S. Authorities arrested the king's brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor in February on suspicion of misconduct in a public office in relation to his friendship with Epstein, the late convicted sex offender and financier.
The king did not directly address the Epstein controversy, but he did refer to "victims" of societal ills in his speech.
"Not by the will of one, but by the deliberation of many, representing the living mosaic of the United States. In both of our countries, it is the very fact of our vibrant, diverse and free societies that gives us our collective strength, including to support victims of some of the ills that, so tragically, exist in both our societies today."
Earlier in the day, Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., co-author of the law that forced the release of the government's Epstein files, hosted a roundtable with Epstein survivors, advocates and lawmakers.
Khanna said Charles had declined a request to meet with the Epstein survivors, adding, "I thought the king owed that to the survivors, given his brother’s serious allegations of abuse."
Before his speech, Charles met with House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who made history in January by becoming the first American House speaker to address the British Parliament. Charles then met with the four top congressional leaders.
He delivered his remarks from the dais of the House of Representatives, where President Franklin D. Roosevelt addressed Congress in 1941 the day after the Pearl Harbor attack as America entered World War II. Weeks later, Winston Churchill would also address Congress to express the unity of the U.S. and the U.K. in the war effort, but from the Senate chamber.
The only other British monarch to address a joint meeting of Congress was the king’s mother, who visited the Capitol on May 16, 1991.
She spoke a couple of months after the end of the Gulf War, when the U.K. had joined the U.S.-led coalition that fought to liberate Kuwait after the Iraqi invasion.
“Some people believe that power grows from the barrel of the gun. So it can, but history shows that it never grows well nor for very long,” Elizabeth said in her short address in the House chamber. “Force, in the end, is sterile. We have gone a better way; our societies rest on mutual agreement, on contract and on consensus.”
King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, Charles' grandparents, made history in 1939 as the first reigning British monarchs to set foot in the U.S. The trip included a visit to the Capitol but not a speech.
There were plenty of lighthearted moments in Charles' speech. He recounted how he still upholds a tradition of taking a member of Parliament “hostage” wherever he addresses that legislative body, “holding him or her at Buckingham Palace until I am safely returned.”
“These days, we look after our ‘guest’ rather well — to the point that they often do not want to leave!” he said. “I don’t know, Mr. Speaker, if there were any volunteers for that role here today?”
Charles said this week’s visit to the U.S. is his 20th, but his first as king.
"This is a city which symbolizes a period in our shared history, or what Charles Dickens might have called ‘A Tale of Two Georges’: the first president, George Washington, and my five-times great grandfather King George III," Charles said to laughter from the lawmakers.
"King George never set foot in America, and please rest assured, I am not here as part of some cunning rearguard action!"
