King Charles in Brandenburg: bridge building and cake crown

Finowfurt/Brodowin (dpa/bb). King Charles III paid tribute to Great Britain’s military cooperation with Germany during a trip to Brandenburg. In Finowfurt, northeast of Berlin, the British monarch saw on Thursday how around 100 soldiers from the German-British Pioneer Bridge Battalion 130 assembled a high-speed floating bridge. A little later, Charles visited the Brodowin ecovillage. There, however, a severe storm with thunder and lightning upset royal protocol and schedule.

Actually wanted King Charles III. make cheese here in just a few minutes, cut a welcome cake and pet the calf. Immediately after the monarch’s arrival, however, a severe storm swept over Brodowin. Despite the storm, the king managed to finish the cake and cheese program.

He was greeted with a picture-perfect Queen Victoria cake made of white chocolate, icing jewels, a special English stir-fry, English buttercream and raspberries. The whole thing was modeled on the crown that Charles III. will be crowned in May. Charles also went to the cheese factory and talked to employees. But there probably wasn’t enough time for the calves.

The visit to the Schorfheide project, located around 80 kilometers north-east of Berlin, must have been a matter close to the heart of the king. Charles has championed biodynamic farming for decades. As early as the 1980s, he switched to organic farming on his Highgrove estate in Gloucestershire. The eco-village Brodowin operates according to Demeter guidelines. It emerged in 1991 from an agricultural production cooperative.

Charles also tried to talk to the British and German soldiers in Finowfurt. According to information from the German Press Agency, he asked the soldiers where they came from, what they do, how long they have been there and whether they are active soldiers or reservists. The commander of the battalion, Stefan Klein, said: “The discussions he had were very, very lively and great.”

Then came the action: the soldiers built a floating bridge over the Oder-Havel Canal out of five parts. Charles climbed it together with Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke, who accompanied him in Brandenburg. The four meter high vehicle Amphibian M3 can be connected to a floating bridge or used as a ferry. According to the Bundeswehr, the battalion, which has existed since 2021, is the only one in NATO with the floating bridge system. Britain maintains such a joint battalion only with Germany.

It seemed as if the whole of Finowfurt was following the royal manoeuvre: over 100 people watched from a bridge, cheered briefly and waved flags.

Charles has been in Germany since Wednesday and will continue until Friday. His stations are Berlin, Brandenburg and on Friday Hamburg.