King Charles was joined by French President Emmanuel Macron and their wives Queen Camilla and Brigitte Macron as they viewed the Bayeux Tapestry on loan at the British Museum in London
King Charles displayed his playful side in an amusing exchange with Emmanuel Macron as the two examined the Bayeux Tapestry together on Wednesday (September 2). The celebrated the 70m-long 11th century cloth which is presently on loan from France at the British Museum in London.
The King welcomed the French President for an exclusive viewing of the tapestry, ahead of its public exhibition from September 10 to July 11, 2027. The pair were accompanied by their spouses Queen Camilla and Brigitte Macron, with Prime Minister Andy Burnham and his wife, Marie-France van Heel also present.
In footage posted to X, the monarch appeared cheerful as he highlighted his “favourite bit” of the Bayeux Tapestry.
Searching for President Macron, he joked: “Ah yes, this is my favourite bit was to discover… he [William the Conqueror] brought with him an enormous cask of wine from France for all the troops. Very sensible.
“Genuinely nice to see footage of a king of England being rather droll,” one X user remarked in response.
A second person added: “Very cool moment! Especially King Charles saying how there was wine for all the soldiers!”
While a third admitted: “I knew I liked him. No wonder my ancestors followed him over!”
Macron also referenced the wine in a speech. He later said: “For it [Bayeux Tapestry] is much more than just a linen canvas embroidered with wool. It represents a whole chapter of French, British and European history.”
He continued: “As you know, it tells the story of the feud between William and Harold – comrades in arms – before they became enemies. And the Norman army crossing the Channel, then the Battle of Hastings fought by William and his troops, which was of course proceeded by a great banquet with the wine barrels they had previously loaded on the sheeps.
“The French having always had a certain sense of priorities!”
King Charles then took to the stand too, adding: “I cannot help but feel that its protagonists, on both sides of the Channel, would look with satisfaction on the Franco-British gathering here today, and be pleased that our two great nations, which share such fundamental values, have prospered together, across the tides of History.
“As Shakespeare said in The Tempest, ‘What is past is prologue’. We have defended our values together in times of peril; we continue do so today across the world.
“It once depicted warriors crossing the Channel; yet today it forms part of a cultural exchange that will see some of the British Museum’s own precious artefacts travel to France in return, in a spirit of friendship.”

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