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The German leg of the visit – Charles’ first overseas visit as monarch – will go ahead as scheduled.
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Buckingham Palace, the UK royals’ official residence, confirmed that the visit by the King and his wife Camilla, Queen Consort, had been “postponed”. “Their majesties greatly look forward to the opportunity to visit France as soon as dates can be found,” the palace said.
The delay is an embarrassing setback for Macron, who has staked his reformist credentials in his second term on raising the retirement age in the face of widespread opposition.
While Paris has seen increasingly violent protests in recent weeks, demonstrations in Bordeaux had been relatively peaceful until the entrance to the city’s town hall was set on fire on Thursday night.
The past seven nights have seen demonstrations in Paris and other cities with rubbish bins set ablaze and clashes with police.
Macron told a news conference in Brussels on Friday it would have been “a lack of common sense” to carry on with the state visit in the middle of the demonstrations.
The King, then known as Prince Charles, welcomed French President Emmanuel Macron to Clarence House in London in June 18, 2020.Credit:AP
He reiterated his defence of the pensions overhaul, and said France and the government needed to move on with other reforms as well.
“We must continue to advance. Our country cannot stand still,” he said.
Macron’s aides were reportedly concerned that the occasion would be used by his opponents to criticise what they claim to be his monarchical approach to the presidency.
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The reception for the King and Camilla, Queen Consort in Chateau de Versailles had been denounced by activists as an insult to striking workers who are seeking to force Macron to back down over pension reforms.
Versailles, when it was still a royal palace, was invaded by a mob during the 1789-90 French Revolution when King Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette, his wife, were forced to move to central Paris. They were guillotined four years later after a failed attempt to flee the capital.
The statement said the president’s office intended, with Buckingham Palace, to reschedule the visit “as soon as possible” and under “conditions which correspond to our relationship of friendship”.