King Charles' subtle change to Queen Elizabeth tradition


While hosting a state banquet in 2022, the royal made one different request


The monarch flashed a bright smile while at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in 2025.© Getty Images
Rachel Avery
Rachel AveryHomes Editor
2 minutes ago
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Since assuming the throne, King Charles III has deviated from one tradition. While hosting a state banquet in November 2022, when the President of South Africa was in town, there was a key difference compared to how the late Queen Elizabeth II would host dinners during her reign.

A spokesman for the King at the time said: "It was the King’s decision to ask for sustainable flowers. They are all seasonal and from the gardens of Windsor and Buckingham Palace. They have not been flown in from around the world."

Floral centrepieces are commonplace at grand banquets, but the monarch decided to do things slightly differently.

The table was lined with hundreds of glass vases with an array of buds taken from royal gardens. The blooms of choice included cyclamen, nerines, rosehips, anemones, amaryllis, chrysanthemum blooms and hydrangea. There was also trailing green ivy and flowering viburnum, adding to the unique display.

buckingham palace dining room at state event
The Buckingham Palace dining room tables were lined with flowers in glass vases

It's not the first time that the reigning monarch has made changes in the name of the environment.

Earlier in the week, Charles added 40 new additions to his Sandringham home in the form of new trees in the garden.

The main Instagram account for the King's Norfolk home revealed all saying: "Over recent weeks the Gardens team have been busy adding forty new 'Tilia platyphyllos Rubra' large leaved Lime trees."

Charles took over the management of the grounds of Sandringham back in 2017 when his mother was still alive, and ever since he has worked tirelessly with grand plans of turning the estate fully organic. 

King Charles has embraced organic farming for decades© Getty
King Charles has embraced organic farming for decades

From organic farming to his sustainability advocacy, the royal has established himself as an eco-warrior throughout his life. 

Lucy Johnson, sustainability expert and founder of Lovebrook & Green, told Best Quality Designer Handbag : "King Charles ascended the throne at a time when the planet faces its greatest peril.⁠ Luckily for us, he is a man prepared."

"The King started talking about sustainability, global warming and grass fed produce decades before they'd entered most people's conversations.⁠ His love of nature has been undimmed and over the last six decades he has proven himself to be one of our foremost environmentalists," she added.

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