King Charles III and Queen Camilla were met with anti-monarchy protests on their journey from Buckingham Palace to Westminster this morning.
The monarch made the trip by horse and carriage to give the annual King’s Speech in the House of Lords today.
This year’s delivery comes against a particularly striking political backdrop, as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer fights for his life in 10 Downing Street after more than 80 Labour MPs called on him to resign.
However, the ceremony also saw a partly hostile environment for the King and Queen, who faced anti-monarchy demonstrations in the streets.
As the monarch passed, placards could be seen being upheld, asking “Did you know?”
The demonstration, coordinated by pressure group Republic, questioned King Charles’s knowledge of his brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s, relationship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Mr Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on February 19 – his 66th birthday – on suspicion of misconduct in public office. He has consistently denied any wrongdoing in regard to Epstein.
Republic took to social media platform X to unveil their protest, writing: “Protestors have just asked Charles, ‘Did you know’ about Andrew? at the State Opening of Parliament.”
King Charles III and Queen Camilla were met with protests on their journey from Buckingham Palace to Westminster this morning
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GETTY
The demonstration, coordinated by pressure group Republic, questioned King Charles’s knowledge of his brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s, relationship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein
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GETTY
They accompanied the post with hashtags “Notmyking” and “Abolishthemonarchy”.
Graham Smith, the 52-year-old who leads Republic, said that the death of Queen Elizabeth II “changed everything” for the group, which has seen rapid growth since 2022.
“We suddenly grew, we suddenly went from one member of staff to loads of staff,” he previously said.
Republic organised a demonstration outside Buckingham Palace merely days ago, that saw around 100 anti-monarchy protestors march from Trafalgar Square.
The protests came as the King and Queen made their way to Westminster for the annual King’s Speech
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GETTY
Republic organised a demonstration outside Buckingham Palace merely days ago, that saw around 100 anti-monarchy protestors march from Trafalgar Square
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PAElizabeth McIntyre, a London-based Republic member, expressed her fundamental opposition to Britain’s social structure.
“I really object to the class system in this country,” she said. “I think it creates a hierarchy which is absolutely unacceptable.”
In February, polling data delivered a damning verdict for the Royal Family, revealing public perception of the royals was down in almost every measure.
The data, taken by Ipsos from February 13-16, showed a significant drop in popularity since November last year.
Support for King Charles fell substantially, suffering a nine per cent drop, sitting at 46 per cent.
Just 37 per cent of Britons asked said it would be worse for Britain in the future if the monarchy were abolished, representing a drop from 47 per cent in November 2025.
Additionally, only half of Britons now believe the country will continue to have a monarchy in 50 years’ time.
The Prince and Princess of Wales remain the most popular members of the Royal Family.
Ipsos sampled 1,086 members of the public from ages 18-75 across the three days.