King Charles donned a kilt and traditional Scottish dress as he inspected a military unit as he arrived at Balmoral today.
The monarch, 74, opted for a checked jacket and waistcoat with a striped tie which he paired with the green kilt as he inspected the Balaklava Company.
While his late mother would often head up to her Scottish residence for the whole summer, Charles has waited until later.
While the King and Queen Camilla are known to prefer staying at Birkhall, their private home on the Aberdeenshire estate, he has bucked his preferences for tradition to honour his late mother.
He will stay at the Scottish residence for three weeks, meaning he will be there on the anniversary of his mother’s death next month.
Today, he was joined by hot equerry Major Jonathan Thompson, 39, a hit with royal fans thanks to his dashing looks.
King Charles donned a kilt and traditional Scottish dress as he inspected a military unit as he arrived at Balmoral today
Today, he was joined by hot equerry Major Jonathan Thompson, 39, a hit with royal fans thanks to his dashing looks
King Charles III meets the Royal Regiment of Scotland mascot Shetland pony, Corporal Cruachan IV as he arrives at Balmoral
Later this week, Charles and Camilla will move in to the castle, which reputedly has 167 rooms, including 52 bedrooms.
Last year, the military ceremony took place behind closed doors to maximise the comfort of the Queen, who was in failing health.
The King’s decision to stay at the castle means he will be there on the first anniversary of her death. She died at the castle on September 8, 2022, the first monarch to die at Balmoral.
It’s not known which members of the Royal Family will join the King and Queen at the castle during their stay.
The Prince and Princess of Wales and their three children are likely to visit. It would be a surprise if Princess Anne and her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence, did not stay.
Last year, the military ceremony took place behind closed doors to maximise the comfort of the Queen, who was in failing health
While the king and Queen Camilla are known to prefer staying at Birkhall, their private home on the Aberdeenshire estate , he has bucked his preferences for tradition to honour his late mother
The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and their two children would also be expected to visit.
Prince Andrew, however, used to stay at the castle with his ex-wife, Sarah, and their two daughters at the start of August. The King put the kibosh on their visit by extending opening times to the public by two weeks.
The King plans to tell Prince William and Kate of his aims to carve out clear roles for each of them, as well as for himself and wife Queen Camilla.
He hopes to use the couple’s ‘star quality’ to help unite the Commonwealth and secure the monarchy’s existence for future generations, sources told The Mirror.
A source close to the royals said: ‘His Majesty is very clear. The Commonwealth must be at the very heart of his reign.
‘He sees it as his utmost duty to fulfil the sincere wish of his late mother, that one of his central roles must be to ensure not only the survival but the robustness (of the organisation).’
Later this week, Charles and Camilla will move in to the castle, which reputedly has 167 rooms, including 52 bedrooms. Pictured meeting wellwishers
Charles meets the Royal Regiment of Scotland mascot Shetland pony, Corporal Cruachan IV, during the inspection of Balaklava Company
He is said to place great emphasis on the younger couple’s role in securing its survival, with plans to ensure they are ‘cementing their own future and that of the monarchy at large’, with the King to take advantage of Kate’s ‘undoubted star quality’.
The top royals will also discuss plans for at least the next year, including travel abroad, major events and key aims.
The appearance comes amid a sexism row as no member of the royal family attended the Women’s World Cup final in Australia yesterday.
Sir Geoff Hurst has blasted Prince William for not attending the Lionesses’ final against Spain in person – as a ‘sexism’ row has been reignited over the lack of support for the women’s team.
The former England star, 81, said this morning that a member of the royal family ‘should definitely’ have attended the World Cup final at the Stadium Australia in Sydney.
The Prince of Wales, who is also the president of the Football Association, has faced criticism over his decision not to fly to Australia for England’s first World Cup final since 1966, despite members of the Spanish royals travelling Down Under.
The lack of support by major organisations for the women’s football team has sparked an ongoing ‘sexism row’ – as the government has been accused of not celebrating as much as for the men’s Euros final in 2021.
Number 10 has been accused of showing ‘weak’ support for the team, while players were refused an £100k bonus if they had won the tournament – a fifth of the £500k promised to the England men if they had won the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Charles seemed delighted to meet with soldiers
Asked if a member of the royal family not attending the final to cheer on Sarina Wiegman’s squad was a mistake, Sir Geoff told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘Yes, I do.
‘I think if the royals attend the men’s game, they should definitely.
‘It’s an English team, a World Cup tournament, a member of the royal family should definitely have gone. No argument at all about that.’
And speaking on Good Morning Britain later in the morning he merely responded ‘Yes’ to a question from Richard Madeley asking whether Rishi Sunak and Prince William should have attended the final in person.
The football legend took England to victory in the 1966 World Cup with a sensational hat-trick at Wembley Stadium, leading to the country’s only ever victory in the tournament.
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