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King Charles announces important overseas trip alongside many more royals

The British monarch will be joined by several of his European counterparts

Danielle Stacey
Online Royal CorrespondentLondon
January 13, 2025
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The King will travel to Poland at the end of January to mark the 80th anniversary since the liberation of Auschwitz, Buckingham Palace has announced.

Charles will attend the commemoration service at the at the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum and Memorial on 27 January.

Holocaust Memorial Day marks the day in 1945 when soldiers of the Soviet Union liberated Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp in Nazi-occupied Poland.

More than one million men, women and children were murdered at the concentration camp during its five years of operation.

Ahead of the trip, Charles hosted three organisations dedicated to educating future generations about the Holocaust at Buckingham Palace.

Speaking on the latest episode of HELLO!'s A Right Royal Podcast, The Telegraph's royal editor Hannah Furness said: "This is such an important event, and the British Royal Family are so entrenched in the Holocaust Memorial project. 

"The King has been really personally involved - he had those portraits done for the Royal Collection. And the Prince and Princess of Wales have done a lot of engagements with Holocaust survivors."

Citing the late Queen Elizabeth II's visit to the former Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in northern Germany in 2015, HELLO!'s Royal Editor Emily Nash said: "The royal family have taken [the Holocaust] as a thing that they want to encourage people to remember and pay tribute to."

Listen to the full episode here...

LISTEN: The big royal events happening this year amid King Charles' ongoing treatment

The King will be joined by several of his European counterparts at the service, including King Frederik and Queen Mary of Denmark, who marked the first year of their reign on 14 January.

See which royals have confirmed their attendance…

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Frederik and Mary© Getty

King Frederik and Queen Mary

The Danish royal household has stated that Their Majesties will participate in the service to mark 80 years since the liberation of Auschwitz.

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King Willem-Alexander of The Netherlands, Queen Maxima of The Netherlands and Princess Amalia of The Netherlands attend a dinner for the Council of State © Getty

King Willem-Alexander, Queen Maxima and Princess Catharina-Amalia

The Dutch palace has confirmed King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima, along with their eldest daughter, Princess Catharina-Amalia will be in Poland for the service. The royals will be joined by Prime Minister Dick Schoof and Vincent Karremans, who is the State Secretary for Youth, Prevention and Sport of the Netherlands.


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Crown Princess Victoria in spotty black and white dress© Getty

Crown Princess Victoria

The future Swedish queen will pay tribute at the service in-person in Poland, while King Carl XVI Gustaf, Queen Silvia and Prince Daniel will attend memorial services for victims of the Holocaust in Stockholm.

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Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg (L) and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg© Getty

Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa

The Luxembourg head of state, who will abdicate in October in favour of his son, Prince Guillaume, is likely to be in attendance at the service. 

Grand Duke Henri said in his Christmas speech: "Climate change is probably the greatest challenge of the future, but geopolitical tensions, wars and economic upheaval also require a need for reflection. The liberation of Auschwitz 80 years ago shows us what cruelty we are capable of if we neglect our fundamental human rights. We must never forget that."

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The couple often attend the opera together© Getty Images

King Felipe and Queen Letizia

It has been widely reported by Spanish media that the king and queen of Spain will be present at the service in Poland later this month.

 

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