British King Charles makes official visit to France; chants of “Long live the King” echo in Paris

Britain’s King Charles and his wife began a three-day official visit to France on the 20th. It was originally scheduled for March of this year, but was postponed due to intensifying protests in France over pension reform at the time. The royal couple were welcomed by French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne at Orly Airport, and attended a ceremony to relight the memorial flame at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier with President Emmanuel Macron and his wife in front of the Arc de Triomphe in central Paris. A wreath was laid at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. After meeting at the Elysée Palace (presidential residence), the president and the king walked through the city toward the residence of the British ambassador to France. King Charles stopped to shake hands and exchange words with people lining the roadside, and some of the people who had gathered chanted “Long live the King!” in French. Upon arriving at the British Ambassador’s residence, the King and President followed in the footsteps of the late Queen Elizabeth II and planted trees in the garden. On the evening of the same day, an official dinner was held at the Palace of Versailles on the outskirts of Paris. In addition to government officials from both countries, British actor Hugh Grant and British musician Mick Jagger were also in attendance. At the beginning of the dinner, King Charles gave a speech in both English and French. He said that his mother told him that in 1948, when she was a newlywed, she danced while listening to French singer Edith Piaf’s songs in Paris. The Queen, who was Princess Elizabeth at the time, was pregnant with King Charles and said: “I think that experience left an indelible impression on me, even though it was six months before he was born. ‘ is one of my favorite songs.” Sean Cochrane, the BBC’s royal editor, said the overriding purpose of this official visit was to visibly improve and strengthen the relationship between the two countries, which may have deteriorated due to Brexit. He explained that. It is expected that interests will be reaffirmed in areas such as trade, the environment, culture, and defense. A survey of more than 2,000 people by the British consultancy firm Portland Communications found that while Britain and France may sometimes “fight”, in the end they are “obviously friends and close allies.” Cochrane explains that 72% of people in the UK and 76% of people in France said that. On the other hand, the attitudes of the two countries regarding the monarchy are very different, with only about 25% of French people preferring a constitutional monarchy like the United Kingdom, while about 25% of British people prefer a republic like the French. It is said that The same survey found that although a majority of people living in France said that Britain had better police and security, 10% said they preferred British food to French food. Additionally, a majority of British respondents said that if King Charles (then the Crown Prince) had voted in the 2016 referendum to decide whether to Brexit, he would have supported remaining in the European Union (EU). Many people responded. Click here for the article on the BBC News site. https://www.bbc.com/japanese/video-66874076 Click here to subscribe to the BBC channel on YouTube. http://goo.gl/tYDMwU Click here for BBC News’ Japanese Twitter. https://twitter.com/bbcnewsjapan