King Charles and Queen Camilla will host Japanese State Visit in London - full details
Ceremonial splendour will greet the Emperor and Empress of Japan when they come to the UK for a state visit later this month.
King Charles and Queen Camilla will host Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako from June 25-27 at Buckingham Palace, though they will arrive in the UK on Saturday, June 22 to conduct a series of private engagements.
The state visit has had to be “slightly adapted” due to Rishi Sunak calling a snap general election for July 4. But it will still include a glittering state banquet and a military parade complete with a carriage procession down The Mall.
Aides refused to state what moderations had been made after Buckingham Palace postponed royal engagements that “may appear to divert attention or distract from the election campaign”.
To kickstart the state visit, which was originally planned for Spring 2020 but was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Prince of Wales will greet the Emperor at their hotel before accompanying them to Horse Guards Parade.
Their Majesties will then meet Charles and Camilla for a ceremonial welcome at the Royal Pavilion, where the Prime Minister is expected to join them.
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Presentations will be made, the Guard of Honour will give a Royal Salute and the Japanese National Anthem will be played.
The King and Emperor will then inspect the royal guard, formed of the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards with the Band of the Welsh Guards, before joining the Queen, the Empress and William in a carriage procession along the Mall to Buckingham Palace.
They will be met by a second Guard of Honour formed of the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards.
Following a lunch at Buckingham Palace, given by the King, Charles will invite the Emperor and Empress to view a special exhibition in the Picture Gallery of items from the Royal Collection relating to Japan.
After tours around Westminster Abbey and the laying of a wreath at the Grave of the Unknown Warrior, the couple will return to Buckingham Palace for a state banquet where the King and Emperor will deliver speeches.
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On June 26, the Emperor will visit The Francis Crick Institute, the UK’s flagship biomedical research centre. The Institute supports an innovative UK-Japan research partnership, which covers a range of public health issues, including cancer, vaccines, and the role of genetics in infectious diseases.
Later that evening the Emperor of Japan, joined by Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, will attend a Banquet at the Guildhall given by the Lord Mayor and City of London Corporation. The Lord Mayor and The Emperor will both make speeches at the end of the banquet.
On the final day of the state visit, they will formally bid farewell to The King and Queen at Buckingham Palace on the morning of the final day of the official state visit programme.
They will then visit the Young V&A museum before heading to Windsor to privately visit St George’s Chapel to lay a wreath on the tomb of Queen Elizabeth II.
The Garter Banners of the current members of the Order of the Garter, including the banner belonging to His Majesty’s father, Emperor Emeritus Akihito, are displayed in the Quire of St. George’s Chapel.
Later that afternoon they will tour the historic Temperate House at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
The Millennium Seed Bank, coordinated by Kew is the world’s largest collection of over 2.4 billion wild plant seeds spanning 97 countries, preserving Japanese and international biodiversity.
Bronze Bonsai sculptures by artist Marc Quinn are currently displayed in the Temperate House, surrounded by a display of Bonsai trees from Kew’s collection.
Their final day in the UK will see the Emperor and Empress visit Oxford for a private programme of engagements before being bid farewell by the Lord Chamberlain.
