The Queen and Mrs Macron, both dressed in white, laid wreaths at the British Normandy Memorial in Ver-sur-Mer.
After placing their flowers, they stepped back to take a moment of reflection and the First Lady approached the Queen, but Camilla seemed somewhat reluctant to offer her gloved hand.
After appearing to give the royal’s hand a light squeeze, Mrs Macron dropped it and the two stood side by side in front of the monument.
While his gesture was undoubtedly well-intentioned, contacting members of the royal family is always a thorny issue.
According to the Royal Family website, there are “no mandatory codes of conduct” when meeting the Queen or a member of the Royal Family, but there is an unwritten rule that says you should not go beyond a handshake. .
While younger members of the royal family, such as Prince William and the Princess of Wales, are known for being more relaxed and handing out hugs, the older generation is following the example of the late Queen, who was not tactile with the public.
President Emmanuel Macron also made the king and queen wait when he arrived 20 minutes late for a D-Day commemorative ceremony today.
After placing her flowers at the British Normandy Memorial in Ver-sur-Mer, the First Lady approached the Queen, but Camilla seemed somewhat reluctant to offer her gloved hand.
The Queen, King Charles, President Macron and his wife Brigitte attend the UK Ministry of Defense and Royal British Legion commemoration ceremony to mark the 80th anniversary.
King Charles greeted Ms Macron with a kiss on the hand and showed no signs of annoyance after the French president and his wife arrived late.
President Macron put a supportive arm around his wife as they joined King Charles and Camilla at the memorial.
The royals were already waiting on Thursday morning when France’s head of state finally arrived at the 80th anniversary event at the British Normandy Memorial in Ver-sur-Mer.
King Charles and Queen Camilla did not comment on the behavior of Macron, who was accompanied by his wife, Brigitte Macron.
But the French media caught wind of what happened and it was widely reported.
The television news channel Cnews wrote: “While the king and queen of England were already installed, Emmanuel Macron and his wife arrived twenty minutes late for the Franco-British ceremony, which shocked the English.”
On Tuesday, Macron arrived almost an hour late for the first D-Day commemoration in Plumelec, Brittany.
There was no immediate comment from the Elysee Palace on the president’s delay in Brigitte’s attempt to take the queen’s hand.
The First Lady followed in the footsteps of Hollywood star Tom Cruise, who offered his hand to Kate Middleton to help her climb a small set of stairs at the premiere of Top Gun: Maverick in May 2022.
She followed the lead of her fellow Americans who have drawn attention for being sensitive, including Michelle Obama, who put her arm around the late Queen, and LeBron James, who did the same with Kate.
Hollywood star Tom Cruise (pictured, right) raised eyebrows at last night’s Top Gun: Maverick premiere in London when he grabbed Kate Middleton’s (pictured, left) hand.
Another tactile moment between an American and a royal came in 2014, when Prince William and Kate Middleton (pictured, center) met American basketball player LeBron James (pictured, right) in New York, who put his arm around the duchess’s shoulder.
One of the most infamous examples of American sentimental contact with British royalty came in 2009, when then-First Lady Michelle Obama (pictured, left) put her arm around the Queen (pictured, right).
One of the most famous tactile moments took place during a meeting between the Queen and then First Lady Michelle Obama at Buckingham Palace.
The Obamas visited Her Majesty in April 2009, when she put an arm around the monarch, who reciprocated by putting an arm around the First Lady.
Although the incident raised eyebrows at the time, reflecting on the interaction 10 years later, during a promotional event for her memoir in London in 2019, Michelle Obama said it was a “natural human reaction.”
‘What’s true among world leaders is that there are people who run the protocol, and usually the people they represent don’t want all that protocol.
President Trump broke protocol by appearing to pat the Queen on the shoulder as she rose to toast him.
‘Then you wonder, well, who are you doing this for? Because they don’t want it, we don’t want it.
But that’s how things are. “So I don’t know if I could have done anything differently because it was a natural human reaction.”
He added that the Monarch called royal protocol “rubbish” during a later visit to Windsor Castle.
Her husband’s successor in the White House, Donald Trump, later attracted attention by appearing to pat the Queen on the shoulder as she rose to toast him during a state banquet in June 2019.
As the monarch rose with her glass of English sparkling wine from Windsor Great Park, the president extended his left hand and placed it behind her right shoulder, as if to pat her.
While the term protocol is widely used, it is considered very rude to touch a member of the royal family in such a formal setting. The Queen did not react and she continued to act as the gracious hostess.
When the Queen met Michelle Obama in 2009, and then the First Lady put her arm around her, the monarch reciprocated.
Another notable moment occurred in 2014, when Kate Middleton and Prince William met Cleveland Cavaliers basketball player LeBron James in New York after a game with the Brooklyn Nets.
As the trio posed for a photo, the athlete put his arm around the duchess, in a moment that raised eyebrows and attracted plenty of attention.
Speaking to MailOnline about the tactile moment, etiquette expert William Hanson said: “While I’m sure the Duchess of Cambridge won’t have worried about it, Mr James shouldn’t have put his arm around her.”
“Americans are much more tactile than us Brits, and this is another example of an American being overly touchy with British royalty. You would have thought they would have learned that by now.
However, the Cambridges don’t seem concerned at the moment and were seen laughing and joking with LeBron throughout their interaction.
