TODAY, history was made as King Charles III embarked on his first official visit to the Isle of Man since becoming King and his first as Lord of Mann.
Arriving in Douglas around 12:30pm, His Majesty attended a special sitting of Tynwald, the island’s ancient parliament. He then addressed the assembly before taking a walkabout on Bucks Road to meet members of the public.
Later, the King attended a garden party at Government House and then travelled to Douglas Promenade to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Douglas Bay Horse Tramway. He met tram staff, unveiled a commemorative plaque and took a short journey aboard double-deck Car No.18.
His visit concluded with an unannounced stop at Heroes on the Water in Port Soderick for the final leg of his Isle of Man trip.
King Charles departed the island around 3:45pm aboard a Dassault Falcon 900 corporate jet, returning to RAF Northolt in west London.
ABOVE: Crowds assembling at Derby Castle as Car 18 and horse Bobby, a 16-year-old Clydesdale whose docile temperament was chosen to pull the latest Royal Tram. 54 years ago, horse Pearl was chosen to pull the late Queen Elizabeth II for similar reasons.
ABOVE: Members of the DoI's Heritage Rail division, which now includes what was formerly the Douglas Corporation Horse Tramway, gather in readiness to meet His Majesty the King. Historian Andrew Scarffe is standing on the left of the group.
ABOVE: The legendary Peter Cannon. Peter joined the tramway in July 1975 as a conductor, becoming a driver the following year, making 2026 his fifty first anniversary and the tramway’s longest-serving driver.
ABOVE: Amongst this lineup to meet His Majesty is Charles Guard (centre, light blue suit). Mr Guard has been a key player in the ongoing effort to see the Tramway restored to the Sea Terminal - a vote on which is before Tynwald a week today...
ABOVE: General view of activity in front of the Tramway Depot.
ABOVE: One of the Bentley State Limousines, official state cars manufactured by Bentley as a gift for Queen Elizabeth II on the occasion of her Golden Jubilee in 2002. It is seen here on Strathallan Crescent having travelled from the garden party held at Government House, via Blackberry Lane (alongside which fields are used to graze working tram horses).
ABOVE: Children from Willaston School in Douglas wave hand-coloured flags as the Royal Bentley arrives at the Tramway Depot.
ABOVE: Car No.18 the world's oldest horse tram still in regular passenger service departs Derby Castle for the short run to Summer Hill.
ABOVE and BELOW:Crowds wave as Horse Car No.18 leaves Derby Castle with King Charles III on the platform.
ABOVE: His Majesty King Charles III rode on the platform of Car No.18 for the short journey,
ABOVE: On arrival at the bottom of Summerhill accompanied by hundreds of spectators who applauded and waved in the perfect weather conditions.
In his report, Isle of Man Today Reporter Tom Curphey offered the following observations:
" For many, it was one of the defining images of the day, the monarch travelling aboard one of the island's most recognisable and cherished attractions beneath clear blue skies.
"Edward James Harrington told us of a particular quote King Charles III shared with him: ‘Having long held a profound admiration for the unique, and indeed extraordinary, heritage of the Isle of Man, I am deeply mindful of the immense historical significance of the Douglas Bay Horse Tramway. ‘As we mark its remarkable 150th anniversary in this very year of 2026, it stands as a magnificent testament to Victorian ingenuity and a living, breathing connection to our shared past.’If there was one irony, it was that the tram still stops well short of the Sea Terminal, an issue that has fuelled debate for years."
ABOVE and BELOW: The plaque unveiled by His Majesty. It is located adjacent to the MER booking office doorway in the new Horse Tram Depot at Derby Castle.
ABOVE: More of today's action in front of the Horse Tramway Depot.
ABOVE: Douglas is one of the few places you can still regularly meet (and pat) working horses.
ABOVE: Following the departure of the King, Bobby the horse was detached from Car No.18 and lead back to the Horse Tram Depot...
ABOVE: ...The double decker, now horseless, was left to stand in splendid isolation for about thirty minutes in the now almost deserted closed road, before two staff members released the brake and allowed it to roll down the slight incline back to the Depot.
ABOVE: Recently refurbished MER Booking Office the oldest surviving MER structure in Douglas, with the world's oldest horse tram still in regular passenger service in the background.
ABOVE: One of the consequences of the King's visit to Derby Castle was that no trams operated from Douglas to Laxey until after the event was over. The first service from Laxey to the capital left at 3.25pm and according the The Clock, the first tram from Douglas - at 3.10pm.
No MER trams were present at Derby Castle during the visit. The opportunity to have the world's oldest electric tram still in regular passenger service on display alongside the world's oldest horse tram still in regular passenger service during the King's visit, was not taken up on this occasion.