The King has called for a global commitment to restoring peace as he paid tribute to the service and sacrifice of the wartime generation on the 80th anniversary of VE Day.
Charles described the allied victory as “a powerful reminder of what can be achieved when countries stand together in the face of tyranny”.
He took to the Union flag-coloured stage during a celebratory concert – the finale of four days of VE Day commemorations – at London’s Horse Guards Parade on Thursday evening.
Echoing his grandfather, Charles delivered his address at 9pm – the exact time King George VI spoke to the nation in a radio broadcast on May 8 1945 to mark the end of the Second World War in Europe.
In his speech, the King said: “The Allied victory being celebrated then, as now, was a result of unity between nations, races, religions and ideologies, fighting back against an existential threat to humanity.
“Their collective endeavour remains a powerful reminder of what can be achieved when countries stand together in the face of tyranny.”
He said: “In remembering the past, we must also look to the future. As the number of those who lived through the Second World War so sadly dwindles, the more it becomes our duty to carry their stories forward, to ensure their experiences are never to be forgotten.
“We must listen, learn and share, just as communities across the nation have been doing this week at local street parties, religious services and countless small acts of remembrance and celebration.”
Thousands of people dressed in red, white and blue gathered at Horse Guard’s Parade, central London, for the concert.
On a day when attacks were continuing in Ukraine, India and Pakistan and the Gaza Strip, he reminding the crowds of the words of former prime minister Sir Winston Churchill, who said “meeting jaw to jaw is better than war”.
The King said: “We should also rededicate ourselves not only to the cause of freedom but to renewing global commitments to restoring a just peace where there is war, to diplomacy, and to the prevention of conflict.”
Paying tribute to all those who fought the Nazis, he said the country united “to celebrate and remember with an unwavering and heartfelt gratitude, the service and sacrifice of the wartime generation who made that hard-fought victory possible”.
He recalled how his mother, the late Queen, said she did the conga, sang until 2am and got to bed at 3am.
“I do hope your celebrations tonight are almost as joyful, although I rather doubt I shall have the energy to sing until 2am, let alone lead you all in a giant conga from here back to Buckingham Palace” he said.
Earlier, the King and Queen, together with the Prince and Princess of Wales, prime minister Sir Keir Starmer and veterans, attended a Westminster Abbey service.
