King Charles calls transatlantic slave trade a "shameful chapter" as calls for accountability echo at Commonwealth summit
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At the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Antigua and Barbuda, King Charles condemned the transatlantic slave trade as a shameful part of history and voiced deep personal sorrow, while stopping short of a formal apology.
King Charles denounced the transatlantic slave trade as a "shameful chapter of history" that leaves him with profound sorrow as he opened the Commonwealth summit in the Caribbean. He said the trade "still casts a shadow over these islands and other members of our Commonwealth" and admitted that his growing understanding of the issue has strengthened his determination to confront historic wrongs with meaningful action, not empty gestures.
"As I have said before, that shameful chapter of history is one that fills my heart with horror and my soul with the most profound personal sorrow," the monarch said.
He added that history cannot be rewritten, but it is inherited, carrying both the achievements and the failures of earlier generations. Prime Minister Andy Burnham, also attending the summit, repeated his openness to a formal apology from Britain, while insisting that financial reparations would not be the right answer.
The meeting, which brings together leaders from 56 Commonwealth states every two years, comes alongside a royal tour of the Caribbean that has sharply revived debate over the United Kingdom's colonial legacy and the unfinished work of justice.