King Charles to resume regular overseas duties next year as he lives with cancer
The King is set to resume his regular overseas trips next year as he adjusts to life with cancer.
Charles is expected to travel abroad during the spring and autumn, the usual times for official foreign Royal visits, provided his doctors give the green light.
This news follows the King's recent tour of Australia and Samoa with the Queen, a trip that a senior Buckingham Palace official said he was "determined" to undertake and which served as a "perfect tonic" for the monarch. The palace official further stated: "We’re now working on a pretty normal looking full overseas tour programme for next year, which is a high for us to end on, to know that we can be thinking in those terms."
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While no update has been given regarding the King’s health or treatment, the announcement of more planned overseas trips suggests his cancer is being effectively managed.
The King "genuinely loved" the tour and "genuinely thrived" on the Australian and Samoan itinerary which concluded on Saturday, according to the official, as it boosted "his spirits, his mood and his recovery." "In that sense, the tour, despite its demands, has been the perfect tonic". He added that the monarch draws great strength from the Queen's presence, particularly because she "keeps it real".
The visit to Australia was significant for Charles as it marked his first visit to the country as King, and while in Samoa, he opened a major Commonwealth summit.
The official has praised King Charles for his commitment, saying: "I think it’s great testament to the King’s devotion to service and duty that he was prepared to come this far and he was incredibly happy and very, very determined to do so."
Despite battling an undisclosed cancer since early February, the King postponed only public-facing duties initially, working behind the scenes before resuming public engagements in late April. His work ethic post-diagnosis is part of a holistic approach to his health, with a focus on the benefit for "mind and soul" during his recent tour with his wife, while a doctor ensured his physical wellbeing.
The palace official remarked on the King's busy schedule during the tour: "It is also a great measure of the way that the King is dealing with the diagnosis.
"And he’s a great believer in mind, body and soul, and this combination works very well on a visit like this, because he feels that sense of duty so strongly that to keep his mind and his soul engaged and then the doctor is here to make sure that his body is properly looked after, you’ve got what makes for very successful visit in these circumstances."
During Charles’s reception by members of parliament in Canberra, Senator Lidia Thorpe confronted him with allegations regarding First Nations people including "genocide". "He was completely unruffled. He’s been around a long time. As always, kept calm, carried on," shared the palace insider.
The monarch holds the belief that "free speech is the cornerstone of democracy, and so everyone is entitled to their views". He acknowledges that potential challenges during overseas tours are not to be shirked, and according to the palace authority, "it’s very easy to run away from some of these issues."
However, "But the King isn’t one for doing that," added the official.
After concluding their tour, the Royal pair took to social media, expressing under their own names: "As our visits to Australia and Samoa come to a close, my wife and I would like to thank both nations for the warmest of welcomes and for the countless fond memories we will carry in our hearts for many years to come.
"Even when we are far apart in distance, the many close connections that unite us across the globe and through our Commonwealth family have been renewed, and will remain as profound as they are enduring."