King Charles III was officially announced as Britain’s monarch on Saturday, September 10, 2022, in a ceremony steeped in ancient tradition and political symbolism — and, for the first time, broadcast live.
Charles automatically became king when his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died on Thursday, but the accession ceremony was a key constitutional and ceremonial step in introducing the new monarch to the country.
The ceremony at St. James’s Palace, a royal residence in London, was attended by the Accession Council, made up of senior politicians and officials who advise the monarch. They met without Charles, officially confirming his title, King Charles III. The king then joined them to make a personal declaration, vowing to follow his mother’s “inspiring example” as he took on the duties of monarch.
“I know how deeply you and the entire nation, and I think I may say the whole world, sympathize with me in this irreparable loss we have all suffered,” he said.
It’s the first time the ceremony has been held since 1952, when Queen Elizabeth took the throne.
Charles, 73, was accompanied 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.
After Charles’s personal declaration, David White, the Garter King of Arms, read out the principal proclamation from a balcony at St. James’s Palace, flanked by trumpeters in gold-trimmed robes.
“Three cheers for His Majesty the King,” White shouted, prompting a response of “hip, hip, hurrah” from soldiers below.
London’s Lord Mayor and aldermen were in attendance, along with high commissioners from realms within the Commonwealth. High Commissioner for Canada Ralph Goodale was also invited to attend.
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 it is expected to be around Sept 19.
The Queen’s body is expected to be brought from her Balmoral estate in Scotland this weekend, first to Edinburgh and then to London, where she will lie in state before a funeral at Westminster Abbey.
Gun salutes rang out in Hyde Park, at the Tower of London, and at military sites around the U.K. as the new king was announced.
After the palace ceremony, the pageantry continued in London’s financial centre with trumpets, the national anthem, and another three cheers outside the Royal Exchange as Tim Duke, an officer of arms, gave a second reading of the proclamation.
King returns to Buckingham Palace
Elsewhere, the crowd cheered as King Charles’s motorcade returned to Buckingham Palace.
Further proclamations of the accession will be read publicly in other capital cities of the United Kingdom on Sunday — Edinburgh in Scotland, Belfast in Northern Ireland, and Cardiff in Wales.
The death of Elizabeth, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, has drawn an outpouring of tributes from at home and around the globe.
In Ottawa, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Gov. Gen. Mary Simon attended an accession ceremony on Saturday to proclaim the King as Canada’s new head of state.
Trudeau arrived at Rideau Hall with the youngest of his three children, eight-year-old Hadrien, and laid flowers at a makeshift memorial.
Although Charles is already king, his coronation will take place at a later date — and the timing for that is not yet clear. There was a 16-month gap between Elizabeth becoming queen in 1952 and her coronation in 1953.
Source: CBCNEWS
