After an immensely long day in New York, the pace relented somewhat yesterday as we travelled out into rural Virginia and the glorious Blue Ridge mountains. While I have loved every day of this trip (even the painfully long ones!), this was, without question, the most relaxed.
Until yesterday, the biggest thing to happen in the small, all-American town of Front Royal was an appearance by singer and actor Bing Crosby back in 1944. That, however, was comfortably surpassed by the arrival of the King and Queen for a traditional block party to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Independence.
© Saul Loeb - Pool/Getty ImagesSome 7,000 people - roughly half of the town’s population - turned out for the historic moment. There were cheerleaders and a high school marching band, clog dancers, Bluegrass musicians and a pot luck lunch draped in Stars and Stripes bunting and Union flags. A parade of vintage American and British cars, along with a pair of newborn lambs named Charles and Camilla in honour of the visitors, completed the scene.
© Getty ImagesBut what tickled me most about the event was how close it came to never happening at all. When the town’s mayor, Lori Athey Cockrell, was approached about hosting it back in January, she deleted the email, fearing it was a hoax. Only when the British Embassy got in touch again a few days later, referring to VIP visitors described only as "Principal One" and "Principal Two", did she realise it might be genuine.
© Kevin Lamarque-Pool/Getty ImagesYesterday, she was pretty thrilled that it had all come together, telling me: “When I was a little girl, if somebody told me I was gonna meet the King, I would have never thought that was possible in this small town, but it was just amazing. And they were very friendly, personable, and humorous. So that was all wonderful."
Behind the scenes, the travelling press pack were exhausted and frazzled, as is often the way several days into an intense programme of early starts and very late finishes. At one point, I found myself perched on a cushion that had been discreetly set aside for the King in case he decided to take a seat.
The King and Queen, however, moved through it all with ease and clear enjoyment.
© Getty ImagesAfter the formalities and political tightropes of Washington, DC and the relentless pace of New York, this felt very different: a chance to see the real America and spend time with the ordinary people who populate it. The royal couple seemed to relish the opportunity in the last hours of their stay. As I write this, they are “wheels up” and have departed America.
At the end of a gruelling four-day programme, Charles and Camilla went their separate ways: the Queen returning to the UK and the King moving on to Bermuda, the oldest of his overseas territories. But both left in the knowledge that they had done their country proud at the end of a visit that had, by almost any measure, been a huge success.
Their time stateside may have been brief, but its impact is already clear to see. Within hours of their formal farewell outside the South Portico of the White House, President Trump lifted tariffs on Scottish whisky, crediting the royal visitors with influencing his decision. The UK Government will be hoping that influence goes further and helps to oil the wheels of other trade and political issues being debated between the two countries.
At the start of this week, I predicted that, despite all the doom and gloom in the build-up to this visit, it would in fact run like clockwork. In fact, I think that was an underestimation, Instead, we have seen a masterclass in soft diplomacy - one that will likely serve as a blueprint for years to come. It has also proved a valuable reminder to critics of the immense value of our royal family on the world stage.
Following in the late Queen’s footsteps was always going to be daunting, but the King has more than proved himself a worthy successor.
His decades of preparation as a global statesman have come to fruition. He has fully grown into his role as monarch, complete with the credibility and confidence that comes with it and holds a position of the highest esteem in the eyes of world leaders, just as his mother did before him.
Stay tuned this weekend where we'll continue sharing exclusive insights with VIP subscribers before the publication of our historic collector's issue on Monday, again available on the VIP hub!
