King Charles urges Commonwealth to address slavery legacy

November 5, 2026

1 minute read

King Charles interacts with guests while Queen Camilla looks on

KING Charles told Commonwealth leaders on Tuesday that his greater understanding of the horrors of slavery had made him more determined to address past wrongs, but they needed to look to the future and ensure that “evil need not have the last word”.

The run-up to the gathering of the 56 member states, which comprise mostly former British colonies, has been dominated by talk of whether Britain should apologise or pay reparations for the role it played in the transatlantic slave trade.

While neither the King nor Britain has given such an apology or discussed paying reparations, both Charles and new Prime Minister Andy Burnham have talked of using the Commonwealth to address modern needs by providing support on climate change, education and health.

“We cannot change the actions of those who came before us,” Charles, the head of the Commonwealth, told leaders in his opening speech in Antigua and Barbuda. “We can, however, learn from the past.

“The transatlantic trade in enslaved persons still casts a shadow over these islands and other members of our Commonwealth. 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.”

In line with that, Burnham said he would discuss debt resets for smaller Commonwealth nations and has announced a £40 million ($54 million) investment into critical infrastructure in the Caribbean over the next three years.

Burnham has also gone further than his predecessors by saying he was open to Britain apologising for slavery, and officials were holding talks with national leaders at the summit to discuss what form that could take.

In recent decades, calls have grown for powers such as Portugal, Britain and France to consider paying reparations over the transatlantic slave trade, when around 12.5 million Africans were abducted and sold into slavery from the 15th to the 19th century.

— Reuters

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