Garter for the Sultan of Oman

The Sultan of Oman has begun a state visit to the UK, meeting the King, the Queen and the Prince and Princess of Wales in Windsor.

The welcome took place in the open air outside Windsor and Eton Riverside station, where the monarch greeted Sultan Haitham bin Tarik Al Said amid the pouring rain.

The King removed his top hat as he greeted his guest, shaking his hand with a wide smile, while the Princess of Wales performed a deep curtsey as they stood under the covered dais.

The party then stepped into ornate horse drawn enclosed carriages for the procession through the streets of Windsor to the castle, ahead of the ceremonial welcome in the quadrangle.

The Oxford-educated Sultan joined the King in the Irish State Coach, where the two chatted as they sat side by side.

King Charles was seen to pat down his own hair after his brief exposure to the drizzle.

Queen Camilla travelled in the second carriage, the Scottish State Coach, accompanied by Oman's deputy prime minister for defence affairs Sayyid Shihab bin Tariq Al Said.

The Prince and Princess of Wales followed in the third carriage, the Australian State Coach, with the deputy prime minister for economic affairs Sayyid Theyazin bin Haitham Al Said and secretary general of the diwan of the royal court Sayyid Loay bin Ghalib Al Said.

The Queen wore a vivid red wool crepe dress and coat by Fiona Clare, a hat by Philip Treacy, and a ruby and diamond flower brooch, with the colour seemingly a nod to the Omani flag.

The Princess of Wales's dark green Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen coat and Juliette Botterill hat appeared to carry the same reference.

Prince William had earlier travelled solo, on behalf of the King, to greet Oman's ruler at one of his residences in the UK.

The Princess of Wales arrived at the royal dais together with the King and Queen, instead of travelling with her husband, because the Sultan is not being accompanied by his wife during his stay.

The visit by Haitham bin Tarik Al Said is the first by a Sultan of Oman to the UK for 44 years.

The last came in 1982, when Queen Elizabeth II hosted the late Sultan Qaboos bin Said, the current Sultan's cousin, at Buckingham Palace.

It was later announced that the King has conferred the Most Noble of the Garter upon the Sultan of Oman.

Haitham bin Tarik Al Said becomes a 'stranger' Knight, outside the 24 Ordinary Knights Companion, and joins a distinguished band of foreign royals to be so ennobled.

Naruhito, the Emperor of Japan became a stranger Knight in 2024 following in the footsteps of his father Emperor Akihito (1998). 

Other monarchs so honoured include Margrethe II, Queen of Denmark (1979), Carl XVI Gustav, King of Sweden (1983), King Juan Carlos of Spain (1988), Princess Beatrix, former Queen of the Netherlands (1989), Felipe VI, King of Spain (2017), and Willem-Alexander, King of the Netherlands (2018).

Previous non-Christian royals to be honoured with the Garter include Naser al-Din Shah Qajar, Shah of Persia (by Queen Victoria, 1873), Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar, Shah of Persia (By King Edward VII, 1903), Meiji, Emperor of Japan (by King Edward VII, 1905), Taisho, Emperor of Japan (by King George V, in 1912),  and Hirohito, Emperor of Japan (by King George V, 1929).

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