Children greet King Charles III and Queen Camilla outside a Sydney church

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SYDNEY (AP) — King Charles III and Queen Camilla were greeted by children Sunday outside a Sydney church in their first public appearance of their Australian visit.

Charles’ arrival Friday marked the first reigning British monarch visit to Australia since his late mother Queen Elizabeth II made her 16th journey to the distant nation in 2011.

Charles, 75, is being treated for cancer, which has led to a scaled-down itinerary.

The couple spent a rest day on Saturday at Admiralty House, the official Sydney residence of the monarch’s representative in Australia, Governor-General Sam Mostyn.

The royals’ first public engagement was at a service at St. Thomas’ Anglican Church in North Sydney. As Charles and Camilla made their way to the front of church, Sunday school children waving Australian flags cheered and shook hands with the couple. Inside, dozens of phones pointed in their direction, while excited whispers echoed through the room. After the service, the king and queen were greeted outside by hundreds of cheering people hoping to catch a glimpse or snap a photo.

Sunday’s service was restricted to the local congregation, with only a few special guests allowed to attend, such as Mostyn and New South Wales state Governor Margaret Beazley.

A small group of protesters demonstrated nearby under a banner that read, “Empire Built on Genocide.”

The couple will attend a reception in the national capital, Canberra, on Monday. All government leaders of Australia’s six states have declined invitations to attend, which monarchists have interpreted as a snub. The non-attendants are all republicans who would prefer an Australian citizen as the nation’s head of state, rather than Britain’s monarch.

It is Charles’ 17th trip to Australia and the first since he became king in 2022.

On Wednesday, Charles will travel to Samoa, where he will open the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.

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