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- King Charles and Queen Camilla said farewell to the German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his wife Elke Büdenbender at Windsor Castle on Dec. 4
- Before their departure, the German couple laid flowers at the tomb of the late Queen Elizabeth, and Charles, 77, and Camilla, 78, showed them the official state sleigh
- It followed the grand and festive state banquet at Windsor Castle the day before
An image of Christmases past was conjured up by King Charles for his guests at Windsor Castle this week.
On Thursday, Dec. 4, Charles, 77, and Queen Camilla showed their German visitors — President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his wife Elke Büdenbender — a 180-year-old state sleigh, bringing to mind winter royal transport to rival the horse-drawn carriages that are usually seen on landmark occasion.
The sleigh was designed by German-born Prince Albert for his wife Queen Victoria and was written about by the queen in her diary in 1845. The German president, 69, and his wife, 63, also viewed an illustration of the sleigh as they posed for photos with Charles and Camilla, 78.
It came as Charles and Camilla said goodbye to Steinmeier and Büdenbender at the castle.
Aaron Chown / POOL / AFP via Getty
The festive touch was a reminder, too, of the huge Christmas tree, lit with thousands of lights, that stood at the far end of St. George’s Hall in Windsor Castle where the magnificent state banquet was held the night before.
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In his speech at the dinner — that had been kicked off by Kate Middleton’s jaw-dropping appearance in Queen Victoria’s tiara — the German president gave a little history lesson of his own. “The atmosphere here is very familiar, After all, not all British people may be aware of this but some of the best-loved Christmas traditions in this country originated in Germany,” Steinmeier said.
“First and foremost, the Christmas tree, the first one of which was displayed here at Windsor Castle by Queen Charlotte in the year 1800 and which was soon to become a feature in many living rooms in the United Kingdom.”
Aaron Chown / POOL / AFP via Getty
Earlier on Thursday, the German couple privately visited St. George’s Chapel, in the Windsor Castle grounds, to lay flowers on the tomb of Charles’ late mother, Queen Elizabeth. They then returned to the castle where they joined Charles and Camilla for a reception celebrating The Big Help Out community volunteering initiative.
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It is the first state visit to the U.K. by a German president in 27 years and the royals laid on their very best for their visitors during their first day on Dec. 3. They were welcomed by Prince William and Princess Kate, 43, during their arrival at Heathrow Airport in London, before being taken by horse-drawn royal carriage through the streets of Windsor to a ceremonial welcome inside the castle.
This was followed by the pinnacle of the royals’ welcome, the state banquet.
During the splendid occasion, the 152 guests were welcomed with a Black Forest gateau-themed cocktail (featuring cherry brandy, which Charles first sampled as a schoolboy at around age 14) and a bottle of wine with a vintage date of the same year as the German couple’s wedding — 1995.
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