King Charles was all smiles this week as he hosted French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigette Macron at Windsor Castle for a state visit. Both the King, 76, and Queen Camilla, 77, opened the doors of the castle to the couple on Tuesday, where they spent plenty of time with them.
While the monarch and President Macron always appear to get on very well, with their greetings to one another showing an evident friendship, it was claimed by one veteran newspaper diarist that the King has not always been complimentary of French people. This was revealed in Kenneth Rose’s diaries, which have been published following his death in 2014.
In one diary entry from 1985, Mr Rose writes about a time when he was with the King, who was The Prince of Wales at the time.
It is believed they were both guests of Lord King of Wartnaby, John King, then chairman of British Airways, at Strathnaver in Scotland.
Here, Mr Rose spent time with Charles, where he found out that the royal keeps a diary, likes art, and, at the time, wanted to live in Marlborough House.
As reported by The Daily Mail, the pair also had detailed discussions, which according to Mr Rose’s private diary, saw Charles give a brutal one-word verdict on the French, labelling them “unscrupulous”.
This word is often used to describe people who are being dishonest or unfair in order to get what they want.
Speaking about the French, Charles reportedly said: “They are individually charming but collectively unscrupulous.”
While the King may have said this before, he does not seem to have any negative opinions about Macron, and is instead believed to be very fond of him.
The monarch also appears to be fond of French people and France in general, as shown in his speech at the state banquet on Tuesday, which celebrated 1,000 years of shared history and culture between the people of Britain and France.
The King said in his speech: “My whole life, and during all of my 36 visits to your country, I have been in awe of France’s extraordinary attributes and achievements.”