This week, French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte visited the U.K. for the first time in 17 years. The Macrons stayed at Windsor Castle as guests of King Charles III and Queen Camilla, and on July 8th, a banquet was held in their honor at St. George’s Hall.
The state banquet included three courses—at least one of which was prepared by chef Raymond Blanc—plus dessert, and so many different beverages that each table setting had to have five glasses. Which made us wonder—why? What exactly does a royal table setting entail? Here’s what we found out:
The Food
According to the Independent, the table took staff six days to prepare. Typically, the menu for a State Banquet leans heavily on local ingredients, procured on royal properties. For the Macron visit, the banquet included vegetables and herbs from the garden, as well as “Supreme of Rhug Estate Chicken with Norfolk Asparagus and Tarragon Cream, followed by Iced Blackcurrant Parfait on a Blackcurrant-soaked Sponge with Elderflower Jelly for dessert.” The menu, per tradition, was written in French.
The Setting
Typically, when a State Banquet is held at St. George’s Hall, a 164-foot, horseshoe shaped table is set using the Grand Service, made from silver-gilt when George IV was the Prince of Wales–from 1762–1830. However, for the Macron visit, the royals eschewed the horseshoe shape in favor of one long 50-meter mahogany table with guests sitting on either side. But, the china was still on display.
The China
In the set are “140 dishes, 288 dinner plates, 118 salts, 12 ice pails, 58 dessert stands and centrepieces and 107 candelabra,” according to the Royal Collection Trust, and the “service is so large and so magnificent that it has never been replaced.” Though a few updates have been made over the years, like the addition of Kings Charles’s cipher to the gold-edged side plates.
The Glasses
When the table is set, the space between each item is measured, inspected by staff (and, historically, by the Queen), and the napkins are folded in the Dutch bonnet style. As for all those glasses? They’re for wine, red and white, water, a bespoke, event-specific cocktail, and champagne for a toast. Though we’re seeing five glasses, typically, there’s a sixth. Did someone go without port? Perhaps. Times change.
