President of the Republic Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said on Thursday that he had made an “almost irresistible offer” to British King Carlos III to visit Portugal soon.
“I made him an almost irrefutable offer, which should not be a state visit, because the king makes one or two state visits a year, and they are very long. [e] still traditional,” Marcelo told reporters at the residence of the Portuguese Ambassador to the United Kingdom in London.
The Portuguese head of state suggested that the British monarch’s trip to Portugal “will be a short visit focused on what interests him, which is to see the new Portugal in an energetic, digital, sustainable nature, to be with the British community.”
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa expects the reaction to be positive despite Charles III’s busy schedule.
This Thursday, the head of state concluded his 24-hour visit to London to celebrate the 650th anniversary of the Portuguese-British union.
This morning, the President was received at Buckingham Palace with full military honors and decorated King Charles III with the Grand Collar of the Order of the Tower and Sword, Valor, Loyalty and Merit.
The honorary award is Portugal’s highest honor and was presented by Mario Soares to Queen Elizabeth II in 1993.
It is awarded only in “very exceptional cases” to heads of state to whom we owe our protection because it is an award given to soldiers, rarely civilians, for heroic deeds or for a career in the military, defense and security of Portugal,” he explained.
Britain “fought for our independence in the 14th century, then in the 18th century, then in the 19th century, in decisive times,” he added.
“Recently, with the resistance to the troops of Napoleon, the British presence was fundamental,” he stressed.
The two heads of state attended an Anglican Thanksgiving service together. [Thanksgiving] in the queen’s chapel [Queen’s Chapel]frequented by Queen Catherine of Braganza (1638-1705) during her marriage to Charles II of England.
The event was the culmination of the Portugal-UK 650 event program, an informal non-profit initiative that organized the celebration of the 650th anniversary of the Luso-British Union, sponsored by two heads of state.
The Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Alliance, signed on June 16, 1373 by Edward III of England and King Fernando I of Portugal, formalizes the rapprochement of the two countries, provided for by the Treaty of Tagilda, concluded between King Fernando I and the Duke’s emissaries. from Lenkaster, John of Ghent, son of Edward III.
The alliance was renewed by the Treaty of Windsor in 1386 and several other treaties over the centuries.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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