King and Queen share smiles at Highland Games before accession anniversary

Charles and Camilla looked relaxed and happy as they attended the annual Braemar Gathering, near Balmoral in Scotland, on Saturday afternoon.

Charles, wearing a tweed jacket, and Camilla in a patterned dress, laughing while in attendance at the event

The King and Queen smiled as they attended the annual Braemar Gathering Highland Games in Scotland, one day before his accession anniversary.

Charles was dressed in a tweed jacket and a navy, red and green kilt, and Camilla wore a navy dress with a feather pattern with a feathered hat.

The couple were seen smiling as they chatted at Saturday’s event, held a short distance from their summer residence at Balmoral in Aberdeenshire.

Camilla accompanies Charles as he walks while holding a cane in his right hand — This year’s event is being held one day before Charles’s second accession anniversary (Aaron Chown/PA)

Before their arrival, competitors took part in traditional Highland Games including tug-of-war and the caber toss, and enjoyed performances by bagpipers, drummers and dancers.

The event, held on the first Saturday in September, has been running in its present form since 1832 and has been attended regularly by the reigning monarch and other members of the royal family since 1848.

This year’s Games was the second time the King has appeared as monarch at the event, having frequently attended while he was the Duke of Rothesay.

A team of men wearing black and red-striped tops in the foreground pulls on a rope while a team dressed in blue, white and red pulls on the same rope in the background as they compete in a tug of war — Competitors took part in traditional highland games including tug of war (Aaron Chown/PA)

The 2024 Gathering falls one day before Charles’s second accession anniversary, having become head of state immediately upon the death of his mother, the nation’s longest-reigning monarch, who died peacefully at Balmoral Castle on September 8 2022 at the age of 96.

The King has endured a difficult second year as sovereign, being diagnosed with cancer and dealing with ongoing treatment, while his daughter-in-law the Princess of Wales was also being treated for the disease.

But a source said Charles had coped with the past year with a “determination to be as public as he was able” to reassure the nation about how much he could still do.

Drummers marching at the Braemar Gathering — Attendees enjoyed traditional music and dancing by performers (Aaron Chown/PA)

He has also been buoyed by the Queen’s support.

“Her natural warmth, resilience and sense of humour, as I’m sure any patient will tell you, is a wonderful thing to have,” the source told the PA news agency.

“Of course it’s been a stressful year for Her Majesty, too, but there was never a sense of despondency, only a determination that they would get through this, as with so many other challenging issues in the past.”

Charles is expected to attend church, spending time in private prayers and reflection, on the anniversary, which falls during his summer break on his Aberdeenshire estate in the Scottish Highlands.

The King and Queen are gearing up for an important tour to Australia and Samoa in the autumn – their first major overseas trip since news of Charles’s cancer was announced.

Highland dancers hold their left arms in the air while their right arms are linked as they perform on stage in front of a crowd — The annual games have been held in their current form since 1832 (Aaron Chown/PA)

Camilla gave an insight into the King’s treatment this week when she opened a new cancer centre in Bath, revealing he was “doing very well”.

Gun salutes are usually fired on Accession Day, but because this year the anniversary falls on a Sunday when salutes traditionally do not take place, the military tribute by The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery at Hyde Park and The Honourable Artillery Company at the Tower of London has been moved to Monday.

Both regiments taking part were responsible for firing the Death Gun salutes to mark the death of Queen Elizabeth II two years ago, with almost all of the soldiers and horses participating having a role in the late Queen’s state funeral and the proclamation of the King.