“I would like to know what is happening,” cries a young woman, while filming the Arc de Triomphe for her friends with her smartphone. “There are at least a million people!” », she exclaims. An estimate to say the least generous, this Wednesday noon, while King Charles III and Queen Camilla are expected less than three hours later on the Champs-Elysées.
The big day crowds are not there. However, the Republic pulled out all the stops to receive the British monarch and his wife on the occasion of this state visit, requested by the British government to strengthen ties with France after Brexit. A trip first postponed until spring due to burning French social news. It was finally under an autumn sun that Charles and Camilla landed at Orly at 2 p.m., welcomed by the Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne.
Time to exchange the usual banalities, the royal couple then headed to the center of Paris, where they participated in a ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe.
Flowers and disappointments
They were eagerly awaited there by Morgane and Stéphane, two French people who had prepared the royal family fan’s kit for the occasion: t-shirt emblazoned with the king’s emblem and Union Jack for her, gigantic one of Paris Match with Charles, of course, for him. They are in the front row this Wednesday noon, closest to the Arc de Triomphe, when the police inform them of the closure of the area. To attend the ceremony, the public is asked to go a hundred meters lower, with a lesser view and above all behind a double security barrier, dashing the hopes of a walkabout for Charles and Camilla. And those of Morgane and Stéphane at the same time. “I understand that there is security, but there is also a need for proximity,” argues Stéphane.
A little further down, Fanny is holding a few sprigs of flowers. They are for Camilla. Working in the neighborhood, the young woman wanted to be present for the event. “I told myself it was an opportunity to take advantage of seeing them. »
A hand kiss to Camilla
Pierre had to be in the front row. This former Republican Guard, whom we met before the start of the ceremony, had worn ceremonial attire. He was there to carry one of the flags of the Royal British Legion, a charity that helps veterans. “I had the privilege of attending a ceremony with Queen Elizabeth ten years ago in Windsor,” he recalls proudly. “It’s the kind of thing you do once in your life. »
We must leave Pierre, who must prepare for the start of the ceremony, and then head towards the Elysée, where the king and queen were expected at 3:50 p.m. No time for us to attend the ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe: the Elysée organization asked journalists to be present on rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré at 2:30 p.m. In line to access the presidential palace, journalists are wondering about the outfit that Brigitte Macron will wear this Wednesday: what color will she choose? Who will sign his outfit? It is finally dressed in a navy blue outfit that the wife of the President of the Republic gets out of the car which takes her with Camilla to the main courtyard of the Elysée, after the ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe . The President of the Republic and Charles, punctual, arrived a few moments before, in a republic sedan bearing the tricolor flag and the royal standardthe flag which represents the sovereign and the United Kingdom.
The two couples slowly walk up the red carpet, posing for the photographers but not saying a word to the press. Twenty minutes later, the four of them emerge from the palace. Is this already the end of the bilateral meeting between Charles III and Emmanuel Macron? No, just time for Camilla to step aside. The President of the Republic kisses his hand, before disappearing for his tête-à-tête with Charles. Reaction from an English photographer: “He kissed the Queen! » (He kissed the queen). The president touched her hand, being less tactile with Camilla than some of his predecessors with Queen Elizabeth II.
An omnipresent security device
What did Charles and Emmanuel Macron say to each other? Their discussions were to focus on biodiversity and the climate, on the state of bilateral relations between the two countries, and on major international issues. At the end, the President of the Republic crosses the courtyard of the Elysée on foot, accompanied by Charles. They did not have a word for the press, but launched into a walkabout between the presidential palace and the British embassy, 200 meters apart. As soon as the two heads of state have left, the Elysée services begin to remove the red carpet. Charles III is due to return to the presidential palace this Thursday for an informal interview with Emmanuel Macron at 7 p.m.
The next Parisian stop for Charles and Camilla is almost a return home. They are welcomed at the British Embassy to plant a tree offered by Emmanuel Macron. This Wednesday, the two heads of state exchanged other gifts, books. The President of the Republic offered an original edition of Roots of Heavenfrom Romain Gary, to the British head of state, while the latter offered his French counterpart the Letters about the English by Voltaire.
The sequence at the embassy not being open to the French press, it is time to head to Versailles, where the republic brings out its finest tableware to receive Charles and Camilla as well as around 160 guests. Despite the controversy caused by the announcement of this dinner in the spring, no demonstrators were present in front of the castle of Louis XIV. From 6 p.m., while the king and queen are not expected until two hours later, around fifty curious people are already waiting in front of the castle. The crowd grew as we got closer to 8 p.m., reaching a few hundred people.
Many onlookers remain unsatisfied: as on the Champs-Elysées, the security system is omnipresent. Members of the police search the bags and barriers prevent access to the castle square. Sedans with tinted windows follow one another, but who is smart to say which passenger is there: Arsène Wenger, Mick Jagger? Or even Emmanuel Macron? The cars go straight into the main courtyard of the castle. Signs have been erected on the grid, preventing people from seeing what is happening there. Finally, at 8 p.m., those everyone was waiting for arrived, again with impeccable punctuality. In a purple Bentley, King Charles, smiling, greets the crowd. Camilla is by his side. The car’s windows are not tinted, finally giving the people of Versailles the moment they were waiting for. After the royal couple passed by, a young woman asked a gendarme: “Where is Macron? When will he arrive? » “He’s already inside,” the man replies. Nobody saw him pass.