The King and Queen have begun a four-day state visit to Kenya, which could be eclipsed by calls for an apology over abuses during British colonial rule.
The royal couple were welcomed by President William Ruto and the first lady at the State House in Nairobi.
The King will deliver a significant speech at a state banquet to address the “more painful aspects” of Kenyan-British relations, namely the Mau Mau uprising.
In the 1950s Mau Mau fighters in Kenya began a campaign to end British rule. Atrocities were committed on both sides, but the Mau Mau insurgents suffered significant mistreatment.
Ninety thousand Kenyans were murdered, tortured or maimed, with many held in detention camps.
A decade ago the British government expressed regret and paid out nearly £20m in compensation, but ministers never apologised.