President Donald Trump, a well-known fan of gold, might find an old hunk of brass he received from King Charles III on Tuesday to be just as precious. The King, returning to the White House for a state dinner to cap off his two-day visit to Washington, gifted the American president with a Second World War-era submarine's bell, polished to a mirror shine. The bell once belonged to a British submarine that spent more than 20 years in Australia when the Royal Navy maintained a permanent presence there. The boat's name? H.M.S. Trump.
A Gift Steeped in History
Charles presented Trump with the relic of his Royal Navy namesake as he delivered a toast, expressing hope that it would “stand as a testimony to our nation's shared history and shining future.” He added with a chuckle, “And should you ever need to get hold of us, just give us a ring.”
Lighthearted Banter Amid Tensions
The King also thanked Trump for his “generous hospitality” during what he said was his 20th visit to the United States — his first as the British sovereign. He delivered a lighthearted toast, noting the construction site where Trump hopes to build his controversial $400 million ballroom after demolishing the historic East Wing of the White House last year. Charles acknowledged that he could not “help but notice the readjustments to the East Wing” as he left Trump’s guests laughing with his wry observation that the British had “made our own small attempt at real estate redevelopment of the White House” when troops under Major-General Robert Ross set it ablaze in 1814.
The King’s visit to Washington followed a period of tensions between his Labour Party-led government and the Trump administration over the U.S.-Israeli bombing campaign against Iran. The British government declined to participate in the unprovoked war, leading Trump to attack Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer as “no Winston Churchill” and slam the NATO alliance as a “paper tiger.”
Turning Tensions into Laughter
In what appeared to be a backhanded acknowledgment of the transatlantic dispute, Charles noted that Trump had recently accused Europe of being insufficiently grateful for America’s role in defeating Nazism during the Second World War. Trump had remarked at the World Economic Forum that European leaders would “all be speaking German and a little Japanese” were it not for America. But the King turned the tension into fodder for yet another laugh line, pointing out that British control of most of North America prior to the late 1700s had prevented Britain’s rival kingdom — France — from gaining purchase in what is now the U.S. and most of Canada.
“Indeed, you recently commented, Mr. President, that if it were not for the United States, European countries would be speaking German. Dare I say that if it wasn't for us, you'd be speaking French,” he said, drawing yet more laughs from guests in the jam-packed East Room. “American leadership helped rebuild a shattered continent, playing a decisive role as a defender of freedom in Europe. We and I shall never forget that,” the King added.
A Subtle Rebuke in Congress
The white-tie state dinner hosted by Trump came just hours after Charles used a historic address to the U.S. Congress to offer a subtle but stinging rebuke of Trump’s often-monarchical ambitions. Hailing the “separation of powers” that ensured the new union would not wind up with another king lording over the unified colonies, the king had both Democrats and Republicans leaping to their feet, clapping and loudly cheering in response to his thinly disguised critique of the current president veiled in a historical description of the American constitutional system.
“Our common ideals were not only crucial for liberty and equality, they are also the foundation of our shared prosperity. The Rule of Law: the certainty of stable and accessible rules, an independent judiciary resolving disputes and delivering impartial justice,” he said. He added that the “bitter divisions of 250 years ago” had given way to “a friendship that has grown into one of the most consequential Alliances in human history.”
