Politics
King Charles calls slave trade a 'shameful chapter' but declines to apologize at Commonwealth summit
November 3, 2026 at 06:29 PM
Coverage
5 reports · over 2 hours
AJAl Jazeera English
UK’s King Charles expresses ‘sorrow’ in Antigua over slave trade
(opens the publisher’s site)
TGThe Guardian
The Guardian view on apologising for slavery: a necessary process has at last begun | Editorial
(opens the publisher’s site)
TGThe Guardian
King Charles addresses summit as campaigners intensify demands for apology for slavery
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BNBBC News
King calls slave trade a 'shameful chapter' during Commonwealth address
(opens the publisher’s site)
BNBBC News
King says slave trade a 'shameful chapter' that 'fills my heart with horror'
(opens the publisher’s site)King Charles has called the transatlantic slave trade a "shameful chapter" while opening the Commonwealth summit in Antigua and Barbuda without apologizing or backing reparations.
- King Charles opened the Commonwealth summit in Antigua and Barbuda, calling the slave trade a "shameful chapter" that filled him with "profound sorrow."
- He stopped short of an apology or explicit support for reparations; palace aides said the king would not announce a change in government policy.
- Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he is open to Britain issuing a formal apology for slavery but called financial reparations "not the right answer."
- Caricom chair Philip J Pierre described an apology as an "essential first step" but said "an apology without repair is incomplete."
- In his address, King Charles noted the Royal Navy's leading role in ending the transatlantic slave trade.
- Prime Minister Andy Burnham pledged a structured dialogue with Caribbean governments over Britain's historical role in slavery.