President Donald Trump made an awkward royal blunder when he walked in front of the British queen.
On Tuesday, Queen Camilla and King Charles III were returning to the White House after a private welcome from the president and first lady. A long line of U.S. officials waited for them on the South Lawn.
TV footage showed Camilla, 78, immediately setting about shaking the outstretched hands. She is seen greeting Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.
At that moment, Trump interjects and starts shaking hands right in front of the queen, who appears slightly taken aback. As he greets Yvette Cooper, Britain’s foreign secretary, the queen backs off. She stops greeting the line of people and watches Trump hastily finish off. Her husband was caught up in the apparent breach of royal protocol, too.
At one point, he reaches for an outstretched hand, only to be left hanging as Trump grabs it. The monarch’s hand lingers in the air for an awkward second before he gives up, and the group heads inside.
Whilst the official website for the British Monarchy states that “there are no obligatory codes of behavior when meeting the Queen or a member of the Royal Family,” there is a list of accepted practices that people usually observe. One big “don’t” is walking in front of the king or queen.
Trump has now done it twice. He made a state visit to the U.K. during his first term in June 2018, when he walked in front of the late Queen Elizabeth II.
The monarch, then 92, greeted Trump after he arrived 12 minutes late at Windsor Castle before the pair inspected the Queen’s Guard. Elizabeth appeared to gesture Trump forward before he walked ahead and promptly put on the brakes, forcing her to do an awkward sidestep around him.
The British public was not happy with the faux pas, and royal experts were critical, too. Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told CNN that Trump looked like he “might as well have been wandering up and down a golf course.”
Fitzwilliams said the confusion “gave the impression of dis-coordination,” adding, “It proves he (Trump) doesn’t bother to rehearse, because he thinks he doesn’t need to.”
Afterward, back at the White House, he claimed that it was the first time the queen had reviewed her guards in 70 years. “We met with the queen, who is absolutely a terrific person, where she reviewed her honor guard for the first time in 70 years, they tell me,” Trump said, without specifying who “they” were.
“We walked in front of the Honor Guard, and that was very inspiring to see and be with her. And I think the relationship, I can truly say, is a good one. But she was very, very inspiring indeed.”
Queen Elizabeth had by that point been on the throne for 66 years, not 70, and regularly reviewed a guard of honor at her residence, so it is unclear where Trump had got his information.
