Even more things you may not have known about our new head of state, King Charles III

Charles made his first trip to Washington in 1970 and spent time with Richard Nixon’s daughter. He later reflected: “That was the time when they were trying to marry me off to Tricia Nixon.”

He has since visited Washington more than 20 times, and met every president apart from Jimmy Carter. When Charles met Joe Biden at COP26 in November 2021, the president remarked: “We need you badly … I’m not just saying it.”

He once sent Barbra Streisand flowers. She later commented “I had a very funny line on stage when he came to see [my] show. I said, ‘You know, if I played my cards right, I could have wound up being the first Jewish princess!’”

In 1980, Charles published a children’s book titled “The Old Man of Lochnagar,” filled with “such characters as a grouse who repels visitors, underwater haggis who revolve as they swim, the miniature green people of Gorm, and the birds and fishes who live in the skies and lochs around Balmoral.”

On February 6, 1981, Charles proposed to Lady Diana Spencer. An interviewer at the time asked whether they were in love — Diana said “of course”; Charles added, “whatever ‘in love’ means.” On July 29, Charles and Diana married at St Paul’s Cathedral. They had only met 13 times beforehand.

In May 1984, Charles had something to say about a proposed extension of London’s National Portrait Gallery at the 150th anniversary of the Royal Institute of British Architects: “What is proposed is like a monstrous carbuncle on the face of a much-loved and elegant friend.”

Diana gave birth to William in 1982 and Harry in 1984. Charles broke royal precedent by being present at the children’s births.

In 1993, construction began in Poundbury, Charles’ planned community based on the principles of New Urbanism. The site now has a population of around 4,200.

In August 1996, Charles and Diana’s divorce was finalized and on August 31, 1997, Diana was killed in a car crash. Charles flew to Paris to accompany Diana’s body back to England.

In 2003, Charles sent a bottle of scotch to recovering alcoholic Ozz y Osbourne following the singer’s quad bike crash.

On April 9, 2005, Charles and Camilla became the first British royals to marry in a civil, rather than a church, ceremony. Elizabeth and Philip were not present, but attended a later blessing at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle.

Charles announced he would give the $25,000 sum he received as winner of the Vincent Scully Prize for architecture to Hurricane Katrina victims in November 2005. Charles said that he and Camilla had been “absolutely horrified” by the destruction they had witnessed on television.

Charles was given the Harvard Medical School Global Environmental Citizen Award in 2007. He was presented the honor by Al Gore, who had previously won the award.

In 2009, Charles was placed first on Esquire UK’s best dressed list, beating Barack Obama, who placed fourth.

Charles’ U.S. Secret Service codename is “Unicorn.”

In 2012, an Ecuadorean stream frog was named “Hyloscirtus princecharlesi” in recognition of Charles’ conservation efforts.

Charles shook hands with Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams in Galway, Ireland, in May 2015, marking the first meeting between a royal and a leader of the nationalist party since the founding of the Irish state in 1921. Adams had once justified the murder of Charles’ great-uncle, Lord Louis Mountbatten, by the Provisional IRA.

Charles’ Aston Martin runs on surplus English white wine and whey from cheese processing

Charles is a Burnley Football Club fan.

Charles once said “I happily talk to the plants and trees, and listen to them. I think it’s absolutely crucial.” Clarence House has also tweeted that after Charles plants a tree, “he often gives a branch a friendly shake to wish it well.”

Charles is the Patron or President of over 400 organizations.

In 2015, a released cache of memos written by Charles to government ministers showed the prince’s lobbying on subjects ranging from the Iraq War, to the nutritional content of school meals, to fishing.

Charles usually has fruit — often plums from the garden — and granola for breakfast, according to a former royal chef. Charles is also a fan of boiled eggs, and one of his favorite meals is lamb with wild mushroom risotto.

At the 2020 World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Charles launched the Sustainable Markets Initiative, an effort to push businesses towards sustainable practices.

Charles refrains from eating meat and fish two days a week and dairy products one day a week.

Charles, though fully vaccinated, caught Covid-19 twice.

Charles and Camilla undertook 356 engagements in the 2021-2022 fiscal year, 348 in 2020-2021, 580 in 2019-2020 and 638 in 2018-2019.

Charles traveled to Barbados, a former British colony, to attend events marking the country’s transition to a republic in November 2021. In a speech there, he acknowledged “the appalling atrocity of slavery.”

Charles spoke at COP21, COP26 and the 2021 G20 summit, encouraging leaders to take action on climate change.

Charles doesn’t travel light: He reportedly sends a truck to his friends’ country houses the day before he is due to arrive for visits with his orthopedic bed, a lavatory seat, and landscapes of the Scottish Highlands among other personal items.

In June 2022, it was reported that Charles had privately criticized the UK government’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda, calling it “appalling.” One senior cabinet minister warned that political interference from Charles as King would “present serious constitutional issues.”

King Charles III is a proficient painter as well and one of the most popular, best-selling living artists in the UK. According to People Magazine, King Charles primarily paints landscapes in watercolour, and sales of his work have brought in close to USD $3 million since 1997.