ROYAL ARTS VISIONS; King Charles III welcomes the King of Bahrain to Windsor

King Charles III

welcomes 

The King of Bahrain 

to Windsor

King Hamad of Bahrain is visiting the United Kingdom to strengthen the bonds of friendship between the two countries. King Hamad, an Anglophile and close to the British royal family, was welcomed this Monday, November 11 by King Charles III at Windsor Castle.

King Charles III embraces King Hamad upon his arrival at Windsor, November 11, 2024 (Photo: Yui Mok/PA Wire/ABACAPRESS.COM)

King Hamad of Bahrain meets King Charles III of the United Kingdom

King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain is currently visiting the United Kingdom. The Bahraini sovereign landed at the Royal Air Force Brize Norton airbase in Oxfordshire on Sunday. On Monday, King Hamad began his official meetings with the country's authorities. During the day, King Hamad was expected in Windsor by King Charles III.

King Hamad is the son of Emir Isa bin Salman Al-Khalifa, who reigned over the Emirate of Bahrain from 1961 to 1999. Hamad succeeded him on that date. The beginning of his reign was marked by major institutional reforms and his small island country was elevated to the rank of kingdom, allowing him to obtain the title of King, in February 2002.

Passage en revue des troupes dans la cour rectangulaire du château de Windsor (Photo : Yui Mok/PA Wire/ABACAPRESS.COM)

King Hamad’s trip to England is also part of his Silver Jubilee, which marks 25 years of his reign. His father, Isa, was first Hakim of Bahrain from 1961 to 1971, the year the country gained independence. Bahrain had been under various forms of British occupation since the 19th century. When the countries in the region gained independence, Bahrain and Qatar decided not to join the new federation of the United Arab Emirates.

King Hamad was greeted with military honours in the rectangular courtyard of Windsor Castle by a detachment of the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards. After the warm royal embraces during the welcoming ceremony, the two kings moved inside the castle, where they took their traditional souvenir photo in the Grand Corridor. The Bahraini court added that the sovereign also went to the castle's St. George's Chapel to pay his respects at the tomb of Queen Elizabeth II.

Le roi Hamad de Bahreïn et le roi Charles III du Royaume-Uni dans le Grand corridor du château de Windsor (Photo : Aaron Chown/PA Wire/ABACAPRESS.COM)

King Hamad was educated in England, in Surrey and then at Cambridge. Like all Gulf princes, he then undertook his military training in England, before continuing his university studies in the United States. By the 1960s he was designated as his father’s heir and he held various decision-making positions in the armed forces and security, until becoming Minister of Defence in 1971. Like many Gulf royals, King Hamad and his family have interests in the British equestrian world. On several occasions, Queen Elizabeth II has invited King Hamad and his son, Crown Prince Salman, to accompany her to attend the Royal Ascot races.

Nicolas Fontaine