King Charles' visit to Australia: 'Great joy' to be back

King Charles attended a mass and expressed his “great joy” at returning to Australia on Sunday in his first public appearance since arriving in the country.

The 75-year-old monarch arrived with his wife Camilla in Sydney late on Friday evening.

He has been diagnosed with cancer and spent Saturday resting before beginning his royal duties.

Charles made his first public appearance on Sunday morning at a mass at St Thomas' Anglican Church in Sydney's north.

A few hundred people gathered around the building, applauding, flowers and flags in hand.

Later that day, Charles delivered a brief address to the New South Wales Legislative Council, where he praised “the promise and power of representative democracy.”

He then joked about his age: “I first came to Australia nearly 60 years ago, which is a bit worrying.”

“It only remains for me to say how delighted I am to be coming here for the first time as a sovereign.”

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King Charles III and Queen Camilla attend a mass at St Thomas Anglican Church on October 20, 2024 in Sydney, Australia © POOL – DEAN LEWINS

Charles will spend the rest of Sunday at Admiralty House, the residence of the Governor-General of Australia, the monarch's representative in the country.

Australians will have another chance to catch a glimpse of the king on Monday when he arrives in the capital Canberra for the busiest part of a lighter schedule compared to traditional royal visits.

The king's fragile health has spared him long crowd baths and a schedule spanning several weeks.

The nine-day trip to Australia and Samoa is Charles' first major tour since his coronation and the announcement of his cancer.

Protesters hold a banner calling for “decolonizing” Australia near St Thomas Anglican Church where King Charles III and Queen Camilla are due to attend mass, on October 20, 2024 in Sydney © AFP – Saeed KHAN

A handful of protesters gathered near the church on Sunday, holding placards calling for Australia to be “decolonised”.

A recent poll found that about a third of Australians support abolishing the monarchy, a third support keeping it and a third have no opinion.

The monarchical fervor in the country in 2024 is in any case much less than during the last royal visit in 2011, when thousands of people rushed to greet Queen Elizabeth II.

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