My heart is filled with horror': King Charles speaks of his 'profound personal sorrow' over slave trade
He urged Commonwealth leaders to learn from history and address slavery’s legacy through education, jobs, trade and climate resilience, while stopping short of an apology.
- On Tuesday, King Charles addressed the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Antigua, stating the transatlantic slave trade "fills my heart with horror and my soul with the most profound personal sorrow," though he did not issue a formal apology for the UK's historic role.
- The monarch's remarks occurred during his nine-day Caribbean tour, where he followed Government guidance that has not advised him to offer an apology or financial reparations for the UK's historic role.
- Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced a policy shift, proposing a "debt reset" and allocating £40 million for Caribbean infrastructure while explicitly ruling out direct financial reparations for the transatlantic slave trade.
- The Caribbean Community is "ready to engage" in structured dialogue the Government offered, said Prime Minister Philip J Pierre, chairman of the bloc, signaling receptiveness to negotiations.
- Activists gathered outside the venue holding placards demanding "reparatory justice" and an apology, highlighting persistent tension between official diplomatic strategies and ongoing demands for accountability regarding the transatlantic slave trade.
133 Articles
133 Articles
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua — King Charles III called the transatlantic slave trade a “shameful chapter of history” during a speech Tuesday at the official opening of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Antigua. Charles spoke just days after British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he is open to making a formal apology and proposed leading a program of debt restructuring to help the Commonwealth’s poorest countries, although he has rejected …
The intervention at the Commonwealth Summit, the pressures for an official apology and the discussion about reparations
BRITISH King Charles III told Commonwealth leaders that the transatlantic slave trade "fills his heart with horror and his soul with the deepest personal sorrow", but offered no apology.
King Charles calls slavery a 'monstrous injustice'
The UK's King Charles called the transatlantic slave trade "a monstrous injustice" on Tuesday, opening a Commonwealth summit in which UK leader Andy Burnham is holding talks about apologising for Britain's role in slavery. The monarch told the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Antigua and Barbuda that slavery "still casts a shadow over these islands and other members" of the 56-nation group, many of which are former British colonies. "…
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