King Charles III and Queen Camilla began their Wednesday schedule in New York with a formal stop at the National 9/11 Memorial, paying tribute to the people killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, including 67 British nationals, as security measures closed the memorial plaza and surrounding streets to the public. Charles laid flowers at one of the memorial’s pools, where the parapets list victims’ names, before the royal couple bowed their heads in silence, according to the Associated Press.
The memorial visit included a meeting with attack survivors, first responders and victims’ relatives. Some of those relatives held photographs of their loved ones during the brief gathering, which took place ahead of the 25th anniversary of the attacks. Charles and Camilla then shook hands and exchanged pleasantries with members of that group.
Michael Bloomberg, the former New York City mayor, greeted Charles and Camilla at the memorial plaza before they walked to the pools. The visit was conducted under heightened security precautions New York typically applies to visiting leaders, with police snipers positioned on rooftops, heavy trucks serving as blockers, and the memorial area closed off, the AP reported.
Among those who spoke with the royal couple was Antoula Katsimatides, whose brother, John Katsimatides, died at the World Trade Center. Katsimatides told the AP that she found it “extremely sweet” that she was allowed to hug the queen, adding that she described both the queen and Charles as “quite endearing.” She also said the queen asked how often she visited the memorial and that she told her she comes because she finds the site peaceful and calm, as well as a place for remembrance.
Later in the day, Charles and Camilla followed their separate tracks around the city. Charles toured an after-school, urban farming effort in Harlem, where children planted lavender and mustard seeds at Harlem Grown’s 134th Street Farm and were shown a live food demonstration focused on food and nutrition. The king also visited a chicken coop during the stop, while children met the royal couple during the hands-on session.
In a separate engagement, Camilla visited the New York Public Library, where she walked through the building and spoke with actress Sarah Jessica Parker as onlookers watched from across Fifth Avenue, the AP said. Camilla also delivered a new Roo doll as part of the library’s children’s literature collection. The Roo doll joins the library’s display of Winnie-the-Pooh characters, including the five stuffed animals currently shown—Winnie-the-Pooh, Piglet, Tigger, Eeyore and Kanga—whose characters were inspired by A.A. Milne’s stories and were originally owned by Christopher Robin in the 1920s before being donated to the library in 1987.
After their daytime civic and cultural stops, Charles and Camilla also met with business leaders in Rockefeller Center and attended a fundraising reception for the King’s Trust. Lionel Richie, who has worked with the charity for four decades, introduced the royal couple at the event, where Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, lifestyle icon Martha Stewart and fashion designer Donatella Versace were also present.
In brief remarks at the reception, Charles said the bond between the U.K. and U.S. is rooted in shared cultural ties and values, telling guests, “Reminding us that we are truly greater together, that’s the point.” The AP reported that he closed his remarks by joking that he would be disappointed not to hear Richie sing. The broader trip is Charles’ first state visit to the United States since he became king, with his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, having made four state visits, including her last visit to New York in 2010.