King Charles makes touching vow about 'years God grants me' amid cancer in landmark speech

made a heartwarming promise about his duty in "however many years God grants me" in a landmark speech amid cancer treatment.

It came as he addressed the opening of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (Chogm) in Samoa, where he also talked about learning lessons from the past. Amid growing calls for reparations for Britain’s role in the slave trade and conversations between affected nations at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (Chogm), Charles and Prime Minister Sir collaborated on the speech before the King delivered it to leaders.

The trip to Samoa by the King and comes as Charles has been undergoing weekly treatment for cancer after being diagnosed in February. He has paused treatment for 11 days while on the trip to Samoa after visiting earlier this week.

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And during his speech today, he assured those gathered that he would continue his duties in representing them for as long as he can. He said: "For my part, I can assure you today that for however many years God grants me, I will join you and the people of the Commonwealth on every step of this journey. Let us learn from the lessons of the past. Let us be proud of who we are today. And together, let us forge a future of harmony with nature, and between ourselves, that our children and our grandchildren deserve."

Charles told how he had listened to communities across the 56 member states and had come to realise "how the most painful aspects of our past continue to resonate". The gathering of presidents and prime ministers for the (Chogm) could see member states begin a "meaningful conversation" about the issue of reparations for slavery, according to reports.

The King said in his landmark speech: "As we look around the world and consider its many deeply concerning challenges, let us choose within our Commonwealth family the language of community and respect, and reject the language of division. None of us can change the past. But we can commit, with all our hearts to learning its lessons and to finding creative ways to right inequalities that endure."

Charles welcomed Sir Keir alongside eight other new heads of government, who took up their posts since the last Chogm in Rwanda in 2022, including the prime ministers of New Zealand, Lesotho and Fiji. Under a beach hut by the water’s edge of the Taumeasina Island Resort the King shook hands with each of the new leaders and welcomed them to the Commonwealth 'family'.

Standing against a stunning turquoise blue sea backdrop, the King dressed in a beige linen suit and tie thanked his guests one by one in a lineup, as they were introduced to him by Tony Johnstone-Burt, Master of the Household. The British prime minister Sir Keir Starmer was the last to join the party and praised the King for his speech at the Chogm opening ceremony. In a warm exchange, the prime minister told Charles it was a “great speech", to which the King replied, "Well, it was very long". Sir Keir assured the King “it was great" when the King thanked the PM “for taking a look at it”.

Afterwards, the King planted a tree in a new garden created in his honour in Samoa, asking locals to "keep an eye on my tree" when he has gone.

Charles shovelled soil onto the roots of the Talafalu tree, chosen especially to help an endangered species of butterfly. "What's wonderful here is all this rain and then sun helping things grow," he told gardeners. "The trouble is as I get older I lose my patience and want to see things happen very quickly."

He asked staff at the garden to send him photographs of the sapling as it grew. The Minister for Natural Resources and Environment in Samoa, Toealesulasula Cedric Schuster promised to send him a six-monthly update.

"I hope this will thrive," the King added. "Will you let me know how it's getting on and send me a photo? I will be very interested to learn how it's getting on." He asked landscapers if they had dug the small hole before he arrived, and was told yes.

The tree was chosen as part of the island's "Talafalu for Pepe a'e" scheme, which plants the tree favoured by the caterpillars of the endangered Samoan swallowtail butterfly. In a true depiction of the vibrant life on the Pacific island, the King also said hello to a man dressed as a manumea, a colourful Samoan tooth-billed pigeon.

The King's Garden, in the grounds of the Robert Louis Stevenson Museum on Samoa, is part of the Vailima Botanical Garden and contains predominantly purple flowers to represent royalty. It has been built in the shape of a crown and contains king ferns, English roses and teuila, the national flower of Samoa.

The King arrived at the garden later than scheduled after the CHOGM section of the programme overran with speeches, apologising to his hosts. Given a garland made of folded leaves and red flowers, he was immediately asked to unveil a plaque commemorating the new King's Garden. It was wrapped in a woven fabric tied with string, which he pulled.

"I'm very touched you have done this," he said. "I'm so glad. [It's] beautiful." A small number of locals gathered near to the plaque hoping to see the King. One woman asked if she could shake his hand, leading to an impromptu mini walkabout.

Putting on his sunglasses, the King took a short walk through the newly landscaped garden, stopping to look at information about native birds. After officially planting his tree, giving it his usual shake to say "good luck tree", he was surrounded a second time by staff who wanted to meet him. "You've done it very well," the King told them of the garden. As he turned to leave in his car, he asked them: "Keep an eye on my tree, and plant many more."

On a separate visit during the royal trip to Samoa, Queen Camilla praised the staff and volunteers safeguarding victims of abuse for doing a "wonderful job". Camilla visited the Samoa Victims Support Group (SVSG) and toured a small campus where up to 100 abused children are given care and an education, while domestic abuse victims receive support and counselling.

After opening the Queen Camilla Pre-School of Hope the King’s wife told members of the organisation: "You’re doing such a wonderful job for these children I will go back to Britain with fond memories."

She suggested possible support for the organisation that relies on donations and fundraising when she said she would see if she could "help you". Camilla toured the pre-school which was filled with donated toys, books and furniture and said: "It’s got everything here, it’s absolutely fantastic."

Earlier Camilla joined SVSG board members and chatted to two former victims of abuse and spoke about those who have suffered physical, mental or sexual harm helping to empower others. She said it was important "To be able to come back and talk to others who have suffered and show them the way."

Camilla also eagerly agreed to have a yellow ribbon pinned to her dress, the symbol of the "let it end with me" campaign launched by SVSG in memory of an abuse victim, to raise awareness of the issue. Siliniu Lina Chang, who founded SVSG almost 20 years ago, was thrilled by the royal visit.

She said about her work with children: "When they come here things change, what they never had with their families they can have here. A lot of these children have never been to school before and cannot write their names, so we want to give them a brighter future and give them back their identity."