At the state banquet last night, Donald Trump spoke warmly about the strong friendship between the U.S. and the U.K. He called King Charles his friend and described the relationship as one built on shared history, love, and language. King Charles gave a calmer but more surprising speech. He joked that years ago he “might have been married off within the Nixon family,” which left many guests confused but amused. Queen Camilla, however, clearly knew what he meant.
The story goes back to 1970. A 21-year-old Prince Charles had just met Camilla at a polo match, but another possible match was quietly being suggested. During a short trip to the U.S., Charles met President Richard Nixon’s daughter, Tricia. She was confident, attractive, a little older than Charles, and very well connected. Nixon, hoping to boost his own image during the Vietnam War, organized events to bring Charles and Tricia together. They sat side by side at a baseball game and laughed together at a big White House dinner-dance.
That summer, Tricia also became a TV favorite when she gave a tour of the White House in a white lace dress. Some people saw a match between Charles and Tricia as a way to mix the glamour of royalty with the power of an American presidency.
Years later, Charles admitted that Nixon had indeed tried to match him with Tricia, calling it “amusing.” At the time, U.S. commentators were fascinated by Charles’s royal charm, which they felt Nixon lacked. In the end, the media called it “the match that didn’t take,” and Tricia later married a Harvard-trained lawyer.
This story shows how long Americans have admired British royalty. Even after the American Revolution, leaders like Thomas Jefferson admitted that some Americans still admired kings and queens. In the 1800s, many wealthy American families married into British nobility, such as Consuelo Vanderbilt and Jennie Jerome.
Today, in 2025, Britain is again showing off its royal tradition during Trump’s visit, from Queen Camilla’s jewels to Kate Middleton’s golden gown. It highlights how deep the U.S.-U.K. connection goes, through history, trade, and even a long-ago hint of romance between Buckingham Palace and the White House.
