:NOW Last updated 2026-10-28 00:00 UTC. Built from BBC News (23:16 UTC), France24 (23:14 UTC), Al Jazeera, CNN/AP, ABC News, UPI, ITV, Jamaica Observer, Commonwealth secretariat. :INFO What we know King Charles III arrived in Nassau, The Bahamas, on 27 October 2026, beginning a nine-day Caribbean tour. It is his first official visit to the Bahamas as king. The Bahamian government closed all public schools on the island of New Providence to welcome him. At Clifford Park in Nassau, the same site where he granted the Bahamas independence in 1973 as Prince of Wales, Charles said: "It is only right that we should acknowledge the great suffering and injustices of the past in these islands and beyond." Buckingham Palace confirmed he will not formally apologise for Britain's role in the slave trade, following UK government policy. He will attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Antigua and Barbuda from 1 to 4 November 2026, where slavery reparations are expected to be a central topic. :COUNTER 9 Days of the Caribbean tour (Bahamas, Guyana, Antigua and Barbuda) :COUNTER 56 Commonwealth nations represented at CHOGM in Antigua and Barbuda :STATS [icon:CLOCK] King Charles arrives Bahamas | 27 October 2026 [icon:CLOCK] CHOGM dates | 1-4 November 2026, St John's, Antigua and Barbuda [icon:USERS] Commonwealth nations at CHOGM | 56 [icon:CHART] CARICOM investment projects submitted for CHOGM | $34 billion [icon:CHART] Africans enslaved in British territories 1660-1807 | More than 3 million [icon:CHART] Estimated deaths crossing the Atlantic | Up to 400,000 [icon:CHART] Bahamas 2023 poll: favour becoming a republic | 51% [icon:CHART] Bahamas 2023 poll: favour retaining British monarchy | 27% [icon:CLOCK] Jamaica's reparations petition referred to Privy Council | September 2026 :INFO What is not known yet It is not known what specific language Charles will use when he addresses CHOGM on 3 November. The UK government has not announced any change to its position against financial reparations. The research commissioned by Buckingham Palace into the monarchy's links to slavery, expected to conclude in September 2026, has not been made publicly available. It is not confirmed whether reparations will appear on the official CHOGM agenda or only in side discussions. :TIMELINE Key events: King Charles, the Caribbean, and reparations British Crown begins financing the transatlantic slave trade under Charles II. 1807-01-01 | Britain abolishes the slave trade; more than 3 million Africans had been shipped. 1834-01-01 | Slavery abolished in British Empire; slave owners paid 20 million pounds compensation. 1973-07-10 | Prince Charles grants the Bahamas independence at Clifford Park, Nassau. 2021-11-01 | Then-Prince Charles visits Barbados; calls slavery an "appalling atrocity." 2023-01-01 | Lord Ashcroft Poll: 51% of Bahamians want the country to become a republic. 2026-09-07 | Jamaica formally files slavery reparations petition with King Charles in London. 2026-09-23 | Charles refers Jamaica's petition to the Privy Council (UK's highest Caribbean court of appeal). 2026-10-27 | Charles arrives in Nassau; acknowledges "great suffering and injustices of the past." CHOGM, St John's, Antigua and Barbuda; reparations expected on agenda. :QUOTE [links:https://abcnews.com/Entertainment/wireStory/king-charles-iii-arrives-bahamas-official-caribbean-trip-137618712, quotetype:plain, subtitle:King Charles III] It is only right that we should acknowledge the great suffering and injustices of the past in these islands and beyond, even as we rejoice in the successes of the present. :QUOTE [links:https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/27/king-charless-caribbean-tour-will-he-discuss-slavery-reparations, quotetype:plain, subtitle:Guyana President Mohamed Irfaan Ali] You exploited the region. You destroyed lives. You created underdevelopment. :MAP 25.0343,-77.3963,Nassau, The Bahamas. First stop: Charles arrived 27 October 2026 6.8013,-58.1553,Georgetown, Guyana. Second stop: state visit before CHOGM 17.1274,-61.8468,St John's, Antigua and Barbuda. CHOGM 1-4 November 2026 17.997,-76.7936,Kingston, Jamaica. Filed reparations petition in September 2026 :INFO Reparations debate: what each side says Caribbean nations, through CARICOM, are calling for a full formal apology, debt cancellation, repatriation support, and investment in public health and education. Jamaica's petition to the Privy Council asks the court to rule on whether the enslavement of Africans was ever lawful under English law, and whether Britain has a legal obligation to provide a remedy. The UK government's position, restated by Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds on 27 October, is that reparations are not "a reasonable request" and that past events should not be attributed to current generations. Buckingham Palace says Charles will not shy away from the "most shameful aspects of our past" but can only act on the advice of his ministers under the UK constitutional settlement. :CHECKLIST What to watch next [ ] - 2026-10-28 to 30: Charles continues Bahamas visit; meets Royal Bahamas Defence Force and civil society leaders. [ ] - 2026-10-29 to 30: State visit to Guyana; President Ali expected to press reparations. [ ] - 2026-10-30: Queen Camilla joins the tour in Antigua and Barbuda. [ ] - 2026-11-01 to 04: CHOGM, St John's; all 56 member nations attend; reparations likely to feature in leaders' sessions and People's Forum. [ ] - 2026-11-03: Charles addresses CHOGM opening ceremony. [ ] - Ongoing: Privy Council review of Jamaica's reparations petition; ruling timeline unknown. [ ] - Ongoing: Whether Buckingham Palace publishes its research into the monarchy's slavery links. :NOTE How we know this. Charles's arrival and Clifford Park speech: ABC News/AP (27 October, updated 23:25 UTC), BBC News (23:16 UTC), France24 (23:14 UTC), ITV. Tour itinerary and CHOGM dates: Commonwealth Secretariat official website (thecommonwealth.org), CHOGM 2026 official site (chogm26.gov.ag). Jamaica petition and Privy Council referral: Al Jazeera (September 2026), Washington Post (23 September 2026). Reparations statistics: CARICOM Reparations Commission, PBS NewsHour background. UK governmen :LINK https://abcnews.com/Entertainment/wireStory/king-charles-iii-arrives-bahamas-official-caribbean-trip-137618712 ABC News (AP): King Charles III arrives in Bahamas for official Caribbean trip :LINK https://www.france24.com/en/americas/20261027-king-charles-slavery-apology-caribbean-tour France24: King Charles confronts calls for slavery apology during Caribbean tour :LINK https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/27/king-charless-caribbean-tour-will-he-discuss-slavery-reparations Al Jazeera: King Charles's Caribbean tour: will he discuss slavery reparations? :LINK https://www.itv.com/news/2026-10-27/king-begins-tour-of-caribbean-as-calls-grow-for-slavery-apology ITV News: King begins tour of Caribbean as calls grow for slavery apology :LINK https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2026/10/27/Bahamas-King-Charles-Caribbean-tour/2111793106070 UPI: Long shadow of slavery looms over King Charles as he heads to Caribbean :LINK https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/2026/10/27/king-charles-tackle-thorny-legacy-slavery-caribbean-trip/ Jamaica Observer: King Charles to tackle thorny legacy of slavery on Caribbean trip :LINK https://thecommonwealth.org/chogm-2026 Commonwealth Secretariat: CHOGM 2026 official information :LINK https://chogm26.gov.ag/ CHOGM 2026 official website (Antigua and Barbuda government)