Charles III celebrated his first anniversary as monarch with a luxurious tea party

On Tuesday, November 14, King Charles III of Great Britain celebrates his 75th birthday. The monarch held a celebration a day earlier, on November 13. Many celebrities gathered for a tea party at his Highgrove House estate. Representatives of various organizations and people of the so-called Windrush generation were also present. Many of the guests are also turning 75 this year.

The British king has two birthdays: June 17 and November 14. His mother, Queen Elizabeth II, also had two celebrations: her “real” birthday on April 21, and her official birthday in June. During the “official” birthday there is a “Color Parade” of the Horse Guards.

The tradition of celebrating the event more than once a year dates back to 1748 (the reign of King George II) and is not explained by “high matters”. King George was born on November 10th. This is the month when the UK rarely experiences good weather. For this reason, the monarch decided to organize the celebration in a warmer time. Since then, the tradition began to pass from one monarch to another.

But if the June birthday is actually created for everyone, then the royals prefer to celebrate their real birthday with their closest ones. For example, in honor of his first birthday as King of Great Britain in 2022, several family photographs of His Majesty were published. Charles III is pictured there with his wife Camilla, sons William and Harry and their spouses. Also present in the photo were the king’s three eldest grandchildren: Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

This year’s celebration will obviously not be as family-friendly for various reasons. The king plans to host a reception for around 400 National Health Service (NHS) nurses and midwives at Buckingham Palace. Traditionally, fireworks will be fired across the country in honor of the monarch, including at the Tower of London. As the BBC notes, the gala events emphasize public service rather than glitzy parties. Although it is expected that there will be a private dinner for relatives and close friends.

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, will not be at the event. Well-placed sources have confirmed to the British press that Harry will only call his father. This, by the way, is being seen as an “olive branch” after claims that there was no contact with Prince Harry regarding birthday plans.

The central event of the public part of the day will be the official launch of the King of Great Britain’s own project, the Coronation Food Project. Its goal is to create distribution centers that will distribute surplus food to 14 million people facing food insecurity.

But still, the “brilliant party” still took place the day before the official birthday of King Charles III. Some British media even called the celebration a “75-year-old party.”

The venue for the lavish tea party was Highgrove House (the family residence of King Charles III and his wife). A similar event took place at Dumfries House in East Ayrshire (Scotland). It is clear that the celebration in Scotland took place without Charles.

The monarch came up with the idea of ​​paying tribute to those who contributed to the local community. Hundreds of people born in 1948 were invited to participate in the event. According to BBC estimates, more than 250 people in total attended the two events.

Volunteer swimming coach Ron Robertson was among the lucky people who spent the day enjoying live music, afternoon tea and dancing at Dumfries House. He still teaches children swimming, despite his impressive age.

Organized by the Royal Foundation, the celebration was also attended by Betty Perry, who worked as a housing manager for Glasgow City Council for more than 20 years.

Those invited to the celebration could not only drink tea in a rich atmosphere, but also dance with the Dumfries House butler and even listen to the vocals of an Elvis Presley lookalike.

It was a little more pretentious at Highgrove House in Gloucestershire. The party was attended by county residents nominated by family or friends for their hard work in the community. All of them will also turn 75 this year or will turn 75. Among the guests one could notice representatives of the so-called Windrush generation (people who arrived in Great Britain from the British West Indies from 1948 to 1971).

Famous faces included celebrity chef Raymond Blanc, nationally popular show host Jay Blades and singer Lee Jon from the band Imagination. By the way, it was the performer’s 96-year-old mother, Jessie Stevens, who was one of the heroines of the project “Windrush: Portraits of a Generation of Innovators.” She was also present at the celebration.

When the king arrived, a guest choir sang the late Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” and the guests performed the traditional “Happy Birthday” in honor of Charles III, to which the monarch playfully rolled his eyes. As a sweet treat, the king was presented with a luxurious three-tiered white and gold cake.

In the public tea room in Highgrove Gardens, guests listened to a rock choir perform classic hits. A regular at the king’s country estate, 14-year-old pianist Bill Goulding, was also invited to the celebration.

King’s Foundation CEO Christina Murrin enthused: “It was great to see so many people from all walks of life come together today to celebrate both their birthdays and the positive contribution they have made to their local communities.”

The director of the Royal Foundation, Constantin Inneme, described the celebration as a “big day” for the entire team of organizers and guests: “This is our first event as a Foundation, but an even more important day for our guests who came here to celebrate their 75th anniversary.”