By Joke Kujenya
GUN SALUTES, mounted horses, and a carriage procession marked the welcome of United States President Donald Trump to Windsor Castle on Wednesday, where King Charles III hosted the American leader at the start of his second state visit to the United Kingdom.
The elaborate ceremony began as Trump arrived by helicopter at the castle grounds, where Prince William and his wife Catherine greeted the president and First Lady Melania Trump before escorting them to meet King Charles and Queen Camilla.
Officials said the guard of honour mounted for Trump’s arrival was the largest arranged for a visiting head of state in living memory.
More than 1,300 members of the British military, alongside 120 horses, took part in the ceremonial pageantry.
As the president shook hands with the king, a 41-gun salute echoed from six World War One-era guns on the castle’s east lawn, mirrored by a simultaneous display at the Tower of London.
The Trumps and the royals then took part in a carriage procession through the Windsor estate towards the nearly 1,000-year-old castle.
The president and the King reviewed the ceremonial guard as bagpipes played, and the United States national anthem was performed.
Trump, visibly animated during the welcome, shared jokes with King Charles and saluted troops as he walked the guard of honour.
He became the first US president to be honoured with two state visits, having previously been hosted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2019.
Inside Windsor Castle, Trump, Charles, and Queen Camilla viewed items from the Royal Collection displayed in the Green Drawing Room.
Later in the afternoon, the Trumps joined the royals for lunch, before participating in a Beating Retreat military ceremony in the castle grounds.
The day is scheduled to end with a white-tie state banquet where both Trump and the king will make formal speeches.
The programme for the visit includes a joint aerial display by United States and British fighter jets, with American F-35s joining the Royal Air Force’s Red Arrows in the first such joint fly-past for a visiting American president.
The Trumps are also expected to lay a wreath at the tomb of Queen Elizabeth II, who died in 2022.
Trump described the day’s events as deeply meaningful, noting his Scottish heritage and family ties to Britain.
“A lot of things here warm my heart,” he said on arrival at the US ambassador’s residence in London late Tuesday following his transatlantic flight on Air Force One.
The visit, however, has not been without controversy.
Protests reportedly occurred in some parts of London, with police confirming that four individuals were arrested after images of Trump and late financier Jeffrey Epstein were projected onto Windsor Castle on Tuesday night.
Authorities put security measures in place around the castle as demonstrators prepared further actions in the capital.
The president’s official engagements will continue on Thursday, when Prime Minister Keir Starmer hosts him at Chequers, the prime minister’s country residence.
The meeting comes against the backdrop of international tensions and domestic political challenges in both countries.
British pharmaceutical group GSK used the occasion to announce plans to invest $30 billion in the United States over the next five years, a move expected to feature prominently in discussions between the two leaders.
Talks are also likely to address transatlantic trade, security cooperation, and global crises.
Trump’s visit takes place at a time of heightened scrutiny of political figures past associations with Epstein, whose history has placed both British and American officials under pressure.
Prime Minister Starmer has recently faced political turmoil after dismissing his ambassador to Washington, Peter Mandelson, amid questions over his links to the late financier.
