Charles III officially proclaimed Britain’s king in tradition-rich ceremony – National
Two days after his mother’s death propelled him to the throne, King Charles III was officially announced as the British monarch on Saturday, in a pomp and ceremony steeped in ancient tradition and political symbolism – and broadcast live for the first time.
Charles, who spent seven decades as heir apparent, automatically became king when his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died on Thursday, but the accession ceremony was an important constitutional and ceremonial step in introducing the new monarch to the country, a relic of a time before mass communication.
Numerous senior politicians from the past and present, including Prime Minister Liz Truss and five of her predecessors, gathered in the ornate state apartments of St. James’s Palace for the Accession Council meeting.
They met without Charles and officially confirmed his title, King Charles III. The king joined them to make a personal statement and vowed to follow his mother’s “inspiring example” as he took on the duties of monarch.
“I am very aware of this great legacy and of the duties and heavy responsibilities of sovereignty that have now passed to me,” he said.
Speaking of his personal grief, he said, “I know how deeply you and the entire nation, and I think I may say the entire world, sympathize with me in this irreparable loss that we have all suffered.”
The new king formally approved a series of orders, including one declaring the day of his mother’s funeral a public holiday. The date of the state funeral has not been announced but is expected to be around September 19.
It is the first time the accession ceremony has been held since 1952, when Queen Elizabeth II ascended to the throne.
Charles was joined at the ceremony by his wife Camilla, the queen consort, and his eldest son Prince William. William is now heir to the throne and known by the title Charles long held, Prince of Wales.
The ceremony ended with a royal official publicly proclaiming King Charles III the monarch from a balcony in the palace. In centuries past, this would have been the public’s first official confirmation of their new sovereign.
David White, the Garter King of Arms, made the proclamation flanked by trumpeters in gold-adorned robes before leading cheers _ “hip, hip, hooray!” – for the new king.
Salutes rang out in Hyde Park, at the Tower of London and military sites across the UK as he announced the news, and soldiers in scarlet robes in the palace courtyard took off their bearskin hats in a royal salute.
The proclamation was read in the medieval City of London and elsewhere in the United Kingdom
Two days after the 96-year-old queen died at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, after an unprecedented 70 years on the throne, thousands of people were still flocking to pay their respects outside London’s Buckingham Palace. The scene was repeated in other royal residences in the United Kingdom and at British embassies around the world.
Britain is in a period of mourning for the Queen, with days of carefully choreographed ceremonies marking the death of the only monarch most people have ever known.
For many Britons, her death is a destabilizing experience. It comes at a time when many Britons are facing an energy crisis, the rising cost of living, the war in Ukraine and the fallout from Brexit.
It has also just seen a change of leader. Prime Minister Liz Truss was appointed by the Queen on Tuesday, just two days before the monarch died.
Making a note of continuity on Friday, Charles vowed in a televised speech to continue the Queen’s “lifetime service” with his own stamp of modernization.
The new monarch looked to the past—noting his mother’s unwavering “devotion and devotion as sovereign”—as well as to the future, trying to instill a reassuring tone of steadfastness as he announced his 21st-century monarchy. will be.
He reflected on how the country had changed drastically during the reign of the Queen into a society “of many cultures and many religions”, and promised to serve the people of Britain and the 14 other countries where he is king, ” regardless of your background or beliefs.”
He also tried to overcome a reputation for aloofness in his early hours as a monarch, spending time shaking hands with some of the thousands who came to leave flowers and pay tribute to the Queen at the gates of Buckingham Palace. He was greeted with cries of “Well done, Charlie!” and “God save the king!” A woman gave him a kiss on the cheek.
In the coming days, the body of the Queen of Balmoral will be transferred, first to Edinburgh and then to London, where she will be laid out for burial in Westminster Abbey.
In his speech, Charles struck a personal note, speaking of his grief over the loss of “my dear mama.”
“Thank you for your love and devotion to our family and to the family of nations you have served so diligently all these years,” he said, ending with a quote from Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” – “May flights of angels sing to you to your repose .”’
