When President Donald Trump touches down in the UK on Tuesday for an unprecedented second state visit by a foreign president, the US leader and his hosts will share the hope that pomp and pageantry will make the trip a success.
Three battalions of guardsmen, squadrons of Household Cavalry and massed bands of the British military will form up at Windsor Castle in an effort to appeal to the American leader. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has worked hard to maintain Britain’s unique relationship with the US, and produced a personal invitation from King Charles III during his first White House meeting with Mr Trump in February.
The President’s quick acceptance has led to months of preparation, with the British acutely conscious that this is an important moment on the world stage.
“The UK has done a really great job in working on a relationship with this President,” said Greg Swenson, spokesman for Republicans Overseas. “Britain had a little baggage because of the first term, and all the hostility from the press and the Labour Party which in particular had a pretty severe case of 'Trump derangement syndrome'.
“But they've done a really good job of kissing and making up, and the state visit is part of that. It's been really good relationship management.”
Britain on parade
Instead of the hypersonic missiles and submarine drones seen at China’s massed parade before world leaders including Russia’s Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un this month, soldiers in uniforms, some modelled on tunics of the 1600s, will line the route to Windsor Castle. There is a chance of rain on Wednesday’s parade, given Britain's weather, but also the possibility that the sun might shine at the right moment.
The President and first lady Melania will be met in the castle grounds by the Prince and Princess of Wales, who will accompany them to meet King Charles and Queen Camilla. Moments later a royal salute will be fired from the castle, the construction of which was ordered by William the Conqueror in 1070, and the Tower of London.
This will be followed by a carriage procession through the Windsor estate, accompanied by a mounted Sovereign’s Escort. With the Grenadier Guards, Coldstream Guards and Scots Guards greeting the party, it will be the first time the three regiments, rather than one, are featured with their colours – or flags.
Pomp and circumstance
For Mr Trump, the visit offers a much-needed chance to parade himself on the world stage with red-carpet treatment, royal banquets and cheering allies – reinforcing his narrative of restored American prestige.
“One year ago, America was a dead country. Now it is the hottest country anywhere in the world,” he frequently says, touting what he views as the dramatic turnaround in the US economy and global standing under his leadership.
“The President likes pomp and circumstance,” John Feehery, a Republican strategist, tells The National. “He wants to be treated nicely by King Charles.”
While the high-profile visit is likely to provide domestic political capital, it also comes at an awkward time. It follows the shooting of Charlie Kirk, 31, a prominent ally of Mr Trump, whose killing has intensified political polarisation in the US. Mr Trump condemned the shooting as a “heinous assassination” by “radical-left lunatics”.
On Friday, during a lengthy appearance on a morning news talk show, Mr Trump was asked about the state visit to Britain. “I'll also go to a funeral for a great gentleman, Charlie Kirk, who should not be having a funeral right now,” he said.
Epstein affair
The visit to Britain also comes amid renewed focus on Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex offender who died in 2019. On Thursday, the British government announced that it had sacked its ambassador to Washington, Peter Mandelson, after newly released emails showed he had close ties to Epstein.
It follows Mr Trump's denial that he drew and signed a lewd note for Epstein's 50th birthday. The President has brushed off stories about associations with the disgraced financier as political sabotage.
“The tabloids will be all over that, the timing is not awesome for Trump,” Mr Feehery said. “I'm assuming Trump will say it’s a non-issue.”
Test for the king
The visit will also be a test for King Charles, who was viewed among US Republicans as a “climate fanatic” before his coronation, of how effectively he can cement the Trump relationship.
“This is a moment for the king to really shine on a world stage,” said Mr Swenson, an American investment banker who has been based in England for the past decade.
“From the British perspective, they really need the relationship, arguably more than the US does. The UK is our number one partner in defence but we'd be just fine without it but I don't imagine the UK could defend itself from a major adversary.”
But he added that the President was “very fond of the UK” and that “this is also President Trump, who just loves all the pomp and circumstance, and there's no one better at that than Great Britain”. More pomp and royals will be on display when Windsor hosts a banquet for the President on Wednesday evening.
Stop Trump
Amid all the pageantry there will also be protest, largely orchestrated by the Stop Trump Coalition, that will include a sizeable pro-Palestinian contingent. They will hold a mass rally in London and promise to protest as close as they can get to Windsor Castle.
“We challenge Trump’s politics of hatred and division,” said a Stop Trump Coalition spokesman. “We are fighting back against the British government and political elite when it tries to appease Trumpism or adopt its policies. We also support the Palestinian and Ukrainian peoples’ right to live in a free Palestine and a free Ukraine.”
On the last state visit in 2019, protesters used a large inflatable balloon of a Trump-like orange baby figure in nappies, which appeared to rile the President. “I guess when they put out blimps to make me feel unwelcome, no reason for me to go to London,” he said at the time.
Chequers chat
The protests will not be heard behind the thick walls of the castle, where the Trumps will spend the night before heading to the Prime Minister’s country residence at Chequers in Buckinghamshire. There, later joined by other senior British and US cabinet members, they will have a lengthy bilateral discussion with Mr Starmer on trade and also on the global situation, including Gaza.
While the President does politics, Mrs Trump will be escorted by the Queen around the castle’s Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House collection and on a tour of the royal library. The visit will conclude with a press conference at Chequers that will give an insight into whether the trip has left Mr Trump with a royal glow.
