German flags are flying along Windsor High Street and the visitors will be given a formal welcoming ceremony and will view a military parade on the manicured lawns inside Windsor Castle.
State visits are planned by the Foreign Office to cultivate diplomatic relations with important partners.
And this visit will reinforce the Kensington Treaty, signed between the UK and Germany in July, which emphasised military and business co-operation and closer links between the countries, including plans for a direct rail link.
The UK government is also hoping for more help from Germany in stopping illegal migration. The National Crime Agency has previously said equipment used to cross the Channel has been stored in Germany.
There will be an exchange of gifts between the King and his German visitors and, in the evening, speeches will be made at the state banquet in St George’s Hall, inside Windsor Castle, with guests to include celebrities alongside the royals and politicians.
It’s likely that some of the King’s speech will be delivered in German.
When he visited Germany in 2023, King Charles spoke about the need to support Ukraine and there will be attention paid to what he might say about the war, and ongoing negotiations to end it.
The previous state visit was US President Trump, who travelled in and out of Windsor by helicopter, increasing his security and avoiding protestors, rather than taking part in a public carriage ride.
