King Charles and Queen Camilla have received a warm welcome on their arrival at Sydney Airport, as they commenced their six-day visit to Australia.
Australia’s governor-general, Sam Mostyn was there for the ceremonial greeting, together with Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese.
This is King Charles first visit to Australia since he became the country’s head of state in September 2022.
The King and Queen will first be brought to Admiralty House, the governor-general’s residence, for a private meeting with Australia’s prime minister after which the official royal duties will begin on Sunday, so as to allow the King and Queen a day to recover from their long flight.
This will be the biggest trip undertaken by the King since his cancer diagnosis earlier in the year.
His treatment will be postponed while he is in Australia and during the next phase of his trip in Samoa, where he will attend a Commonwealth leaders’ summit.
The last such official arrival by a monarch in Australia was in 2011, when the late Queen Elizabeth II landed in Canberra.
King Charles’ visit will include supporting environmental projects, meeting political and community leaders and a naval review in Sydney Harbour.
The King will also meet with two Australian scientists, Georgina Long and Richard Scolyer, who have carried out pioneering research on melanoma, one of the country’s most common cancers.
A message posted on the the Royal Family’s social media account read:
“Ahead of our first visit to Australia as King and Queen, we are really looking forward to returning to this beautiful country to celebrate the extraordinarily rich cultures and communities that make it so special.”
