Queen Camilla goes barefoot as she and the King join youngsters on a beach litter pick in Antigua

Queen Camilla went barefoot on the beach as she and King Charles joined youngsters on a litter pick in Antigua.

Displaying her pink-painted toes, Her Majesty said she couldn't resist slipping off her shoes on the sandy shores of picturesque Fort James beach on Tuesday.

The King said he was 'shocked' to hear that 71 bags of rubbish were picked from the beach two hours before they arrived.

Greeted by a lively band, the couple heard how local grassroots movement Adopt a Coastline cares for the environment with beach clean-ups, indigenous tree planting and education.

The Queen, elegant in sapphire blue, was given a bright blue bracelet made from discarded kite surf materials and said: 'Thank you, it matches my dress!'

Their Majesties were each handed a litter picker and raised them like swords, laughing. 

The King told volunteers: 'You've done a very good job with all those bags before we got here.'

Charles and Camilla are currently in Antigua and Barbuda for the latest leg of their Caribbean tour. 

Queen Camilla went barefoot on the beach as she and King Charles joined youngsters on a litter pick in Antigua

Camilla picks litter with grabbers as she visits a beach in St John's on Tuesday 

King Charles talks to a group of kids from a swimming club as they meet youth-led environmental organisations and community groups at Fort James Beach

As head of the Commonwealth, he has been caught in the crossfire in a row over whether Britain will apologise for its role in the transatlantic slave trade and pay reparations. 

Addressing the issue, the King said in Antigua and Barbuda today: 'None of us, of course, would be here today were it not for our history, which has shaped us in myriad ways. History is not ours to choose or to change.

'It is bequeathed to us in complex synthesis by forebears we can never know. Our inheritance includes both their achievements and their failures – the good they did as well as the wrongs.

'History can be hard to compass, viewed as it is through the prism of time, which can be both clarifying and distorting, and yet its consequences resonate with contemporary force.

'Our history inspires us, can appal us, yet it can always teach us. We cannot change the actions of those who came before us. We can, however, learn from the past.

'The transatlantic trade in enslaved persons still casts a shadow over these islands and other Members of our Commonwealth. 

'As I have said before, that shameful chapter of history is one that fills my heart with horror and my soul with the most profound personal sorrow.'

Charles and Camilla meet children from a local swimming club on the beach 

The Queen, elegant in sapphire blue, was given a bright blue bracelet made from discarded kite surf materials

King Charles, front left, stands with Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, right, and other leaders at the welcome reception for new heads of government

Speaking to a packed audience of around 1,200 delegates, the King – wearing a grey suit and lilac tie – marked the official opening of the leaders' segment of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) summit.

Andy Burnham, who is also in the Caribbean with his wife, told the King his speech was 'perfect' afterwards.

Charles then hosted the Prime Minister at a reception for new Commonwealth Heads of Government at Weatherills Hotel in Antigua and Barbuda.

Burnham chatted with Tonga's PM Lord Fakafanua about the Rugby League World Cup, while waiting for Charles.

The King arrived and first shook hands with Canadian PM Mark Carney.

Lord Fakafanua warmly shook the King's hand and said he 'took notes' during his CHOGM speech.

Mark Carney said it was 'very good'. Burnham then said: 'Perfect, well done.'

John Mahama, President of Ghana, and Godwin Friday, Prime Minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, joined the chat.

Navinchandra Ramgoolam, Prime Minister of Mauritius, arrived later. 

• READ MORE: King Charles throws dinner in Antigua using Caribbean produce - with a royal twist
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