The coat of arms on Charles’ new ring bears a resemblance to one seen on a ring previously worn by his father, Prince Philip, who could often be seen sporting a signet ring with the royal family of Greece’s coat of arms on the bezel. Perhaps, now that his son has inherited the title of Prince of Wales, Charles has passed his original signet ring down to Prince William, and has taken to wearing his own father’s style instead.
The new portrait of King Charles was captured in 2024 by Millie Pilkington, one of Britain’s best-known portrait photographers. She has worked with the royal family on a number of occasions, taking a private snap of Prince William and Kate Middleton on their wedding day, capturing Prince George on his 10th birthday and photographing Charles and Camilla for their Christmas card last year. Pilkington described it as an ‘immense honour’ to photograph the King for this official portrait, adding that ‘the breathtaking backdrop of Balmoral’ enabled her to communicate Charles’ ‘warmth and deep connection to nature and Scotland’.
Princess Anne looked delighted as she unveiled the new portrait of her father in Scotland
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The Princess Royal unveiled the new portrait of the King, after which the Presiding Officer, the Rt Hon Alison Johnstone MSP, said: ‘It was a pleasure to welcome Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal to the Scottish Parliament, to unveil this portrait… The portrait will hang in the Parliament’s Main Hall, greeting the many thousands of visitors who come through our doors every year.’ She added that the ‘striking’ image would serve as a ‘reminder of His Majesty’s love of Scotland and the affectionate connection he has with the country and its people’.