King Charles sweetly refers to his ‘beloved daughter-in-law’ Kate as he shares details of Prince William’s proposal to the princess

• READ MORE: Inside Charles and Camilla’s state dinner: King and Queen enjoyed lobster ravioli and salmon with Champagne as part of eight-course feast

The King sweetly mentioned the Prince and Princess of Wales in his keynote speech at a state banquet in Nairobi.

King Charles, 74, who has been accompanied by Queen Camilla, recalled Prince William and Kate’s 2010 engagement in Kenya.

He said: ‘It was here, in sight of Mount Kenya, that my son, The Prince of Wales, proposed to his wife, now my beloved daughter-in-law.’

Prince William proposed to his then long-term girlfriend Kate Middleton in October 2010 in a log cabin while on safari at the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, where he had spent part of his gap year almost a decade before. 

Meanwhile, the King last night told the Kenyan people of his ‘greatest sorrow and deepest regret’ at Britain’s ‘abhorrent and unjustifiable acts of violence’ during the Colonial era.

The King sweetly mentioned the Prince and Princess of Wales in his keynote speech at a state banquet in Nairobi. Pictured, Kate and William in November 2010 after announcing their engagement

In his speech that went far further than many expected amid calls for an apology over government abuses under his late mother’s reign, King Charles said there was ‘no excuse’ for British ’wrongdoings’ in the East African nation, particularly against the Mau Mau rebellion.

Speaking at the state banquet, he told the Kenyan President and 350 guests: ‘It is the intimacy of our shared history that has brought our people together. However, we must also acknowledge the most painful times of our long and complex relationship.

‘The wrongdoings of the past are a cause of the greatest sorrow and the deepest regret. There were abhorrent and unjustifiable acts of violence committed against Kenyans as they waged, as you said at the United Nations, a painful struggle for independence and sovereignty – and for that, there can be no excuse.’

Charles continued: ‘In coming back to Kenya, it matters greatly to me that I should deepen my own understanding of these wrongs, and that I meet some of those whose lives and communities were so grievously affected.

‘None of this can change the past. But by addressing our history with honesty and openness we can, perhaps, demonstrate the strength of our friendship today. And, in so doing, we can, I hope, continue to build an ever-closer bond for the years ahead.’

The King stopped short of a direct apology, which carries greater legal culpability, because it is not British government policy to do so.

His words came as President Ruto made an even more strongly worded address – and hinted at further demands for reparations.

He said Britain and Kenya could not ‘live in denial of history’ and highlighted the ‘displacement, dispossession and disenfranchisement of native Africans, paving the way for a brutal colonialism’.

King Charles (pictured with Kate in June 2022), who has been accompanied by Queen Camilla, recalled Prince William and Kate’s 2010 engagement in Kenya

The president described British attempts to put down the Kenyan people’s fight for independence as ‘monstrous in its cruelty’ and made clear that he felt the £20 million so far paid out by Britain in compensation to victims of torture and repression as inadequate.

‘While there have been efforts to atone for the death, injury and suffering inflicted on Kenyan Africans by the colonial government, much remains to be done in order to achieve full reparations,’ he said.

But he praised the King for his ‘visionary leadership’ on the issue, saying: ‘Your exemplary courage and readiness to shed light on uncomfortable truths that reside in the darker regions of our shared experience are….commendable.

‘This is a highly encouraging first step, under your leadership, to deliver progress beyond tentative and equivocal half measures of past years.

Meanwhile, the King (pictured) last night told the Kenyan people of his ‘greatest sorrow and deepest regret’ at Britain’s ‘abhorrent and unjustifiable acts of violence’ during the Colonial era 

Charles and Camilla share a toast with other guests at the State Banquet

Queen Camilla cracks a smile as she attends the State Banquet hosted by President Ruto at State House

‘We are therefore confident that, under your visionary leadership, the Kenya-United Kingdom relations will continue to prosper for the benefit of our two countries and peoples. ‘

The King endeared himself to his audience by using several phrases of Swahili and his pronunciation was described as ‘impeccable’.

He highlighted the ‘special meaning’ Kenya has for his family, not least his late mother, because it is where she found out she was Queen.

Their Majesties had been greeted at State House by a Ma traditional dance troop from Narok who greeted them with a ceremonial dance of celebration.

Queen Camilla looked elegant in a blue tunic top and palazzo-style trousers by one of her favourite designers, Anna Valentine.

She also sported a diamond elephant bracelet and a necklace which belonged to her adored grandmother by Van Cleef & Arpels.

The king, who wore a lounge suit as the dress code was not black tie, posed for photographs with his wife and their hosts, President William Ruth of Kenya and First Lady, Rachel Ruto.

Source: Read Full Article