The final handshake battle between President Donald Trump and King Charles III ended in a victory for the royal.
The two men had been spotted in an awkward tug-of-war three days before as Trump and first lady Melania greeted the monarch and his wife, Queen Camilla, on the first day of their state visit.
That time around, the two men stood in front of the White House locked in a 10-second greeting, where the king refused to break the deadlock created by Trump’s signature power move of holding tight, pulling close, and not letting go.
They were at it again on Thursday, this time in an eight-second stalemate of vigorous shaking that only ended when the king’s hand jerked free.
Again, the king responded to Trump’s challenge, holding on as they talked and not getting drawn towards him.
Footage of the repeat incident as they parted ways was posted by an official White House X account, in which the four can be heard bidding each other goodbye.
“You keep in touch,” Camilla can be heard saying to Trump, before saying their time had been “fantastic.”
“Have a good time. Have a good trip,” Trump, 79, responded.
Trump’s signature greeting has a reputation, so much so that “Donald Trump and handshakes” has its own Wikipedia page.
Over his two terms, Trump has locked into some iconic handshake battles, including with French president Emmanuel Macron—who made Trump’s knuckles turn white in the 30-second contest—and former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who forcefully refused to allow Trump to pull him towards him. On February 10, 2017, his handshake with the late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe lasted 19 seconds and left the Japanese leader giving a memorable eye-roll.
After Trump and Charles, 77, shared their first shake at the start of the trip, the pro-monarchy British newspaper the Daily Express praised the king’s insistence on not letting go, calling it a “genius handshake trick.”
The trip has had plenty of talking points.
Earlier in the day, the royal couple had visited the Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, where an awkward gaffe befell them. As they walked somberly through, flanked by service members, it became evident that the Union Jack was upside down.
“Rather a diplomatic gaff by the Americans here,” reporter Mark Stone of U.K.-based Sky News wrote on X.
Still, Charles left a good impression on Trump, who afterward was so smitten that he axed tariffs on whiskey imports in honor of the royal pair, saying they’d “got me to do something that nobody else was able to do, without hardly even asking.”
Charles expressed his “sincere gratitude” to Trump and said he “will be raising a dram to the president’s thoughtfulness.”
Among his good works, Charles gave a joke-laden speech to guests gathered at a state dinner on Wednesday night, gently mocking Trump’s love of Coca-Cola, and celebrating the shared history of the U.S. and U.K. He then rounded it all off neatly by giving Trump a bell from the former British WWII submarine HMS Trump.
Writing on Truth Social afterward, Trump said the removal of the tariffs was “in honor of the King and Queen of the United Kingdom, who have just left the White House, soon headed back to their wonderful country.”
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.
