The King has attended a Sydney church service as part of the monarch’s first tour of Australia since his accession to the throne.

The King and Queen Camilla were greeted by hundreds of cheering people at the St Thomas Anglican Church as they arrived – and by a small group of protesters who carried banners and shouted “Not our king”.

The Archbishop of Sydney, Kanishka Raff, who officiated during the service said afterwards: “This church has a family connection with His Majesty because his great grandfather as a teenage boy laid the cornerstone.

“It was lovely for this local church to be able to welcome the sovereign King Charles and Queen Camilla to join us in worship today. We are absolutely thrilled.”

The couple later attended the New South Wales state parliament to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Australia’s first legislature.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player


2:23

King and Queen touch town in Australia

It’s the first overseas trip for Charles since his cancer diagnosis in February.

They landed in Australia on Friday before the Queen met a 12-year-old boy with a serious blood condition.

Ky, who suffers from aplastic anaemia, gave her flowers after she disembarked the plane at Sydney Airport – fulfilling his dream to meet a member of the Royal Family.

Shortly afterwards the Sydney Opera House was lit up with a four-minute projection of photographs of the King and Queen to mark their arrival.

They then met Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his fiancee Jodie Haydon and Australia’s governor-general Sam Mostyn.

A picture was released of the couple at the governor-general’s official residence Admiralty House as they had a rest day on Saturday.

Their six-day visit only has two-and-a-half days of official engagements to allow the King enough rest time amid his cancer treatment.

The Sydney Opera House sails show photos of King Charles and Queen Camilla. Pic: AP
Image:
The Sydney Opera House sails show photos of King Charles and Queen Camilla. Pic: AP

Ahead of the tour the King was given the honorary ranks of Admiral of the Fleet, Field Marshal, and Marshal in three services of the Australian Defence Force.

The appointments were made by the governor-general, who said they represent an important symbol of connection between the UK and Australia.

To mark the tour, the Association of Commonwealth Countries also announced its own King’s Commonwealth Fellowship Programme.

Read more
King set to be ‘snubbed’ in Australia
Charles won’t attend COP29 conference
Invite to eat at King’s favourite stately home

The new scheme will offer fellowships, undergraduate scholarships, and funded PhDs aimed at solving the economic, social, and environmental crises faced by small island developing states.

The Commonwealth has 25 small island developing states, including Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.

King Charles and Queen Camilla with Anthony Albanese and Jodie Haydon. Pic: Kensington Palace
Image:
King Charles and Queen Camilla with Anthony Albanese and Jodie Haydon. Pic: Kensington Palace

King Charles said he was “delighted” to have inspired the new initiative.

“There is so much we can learn from one another as we work together within the Commonwealth to tackle the major challenges of our age and, as these fellowships do in small island developing states, to address them where they are felt most acutely,” he said.

“It is my fervent hope that these new fellowships will play a significant role in furthering the free exchange of knowledge and advancing the spirit of mutual support that lies at the heart of our Commonwealth – today, tomorrow and towards a brighter future for all.”