LONDON —
With a trumpet fanfare and gun salutes, Charles III was officially proclaimed
king at a pomp-filled ceremony on Saturday, at which he pledged to emulate his
late mother Queen Elizabeth II and serve for the rest of his life.
اضافة اعلان
A court official
wearing a feathered bicorn hat declared Charles “our only lawful and rightful”
monarch from the balcony of St James’s Palace after a historic Accession
Council meeting of senior royals, clergy and government.
The centuries-old
tradition of the council was televised live for the first time as it officially
announced the 73-year-old Charles as monarch after seven decades as heir
apparent.
“I am deeply aware
of this great inheritance and of the duties and heavy responsibilities of
sovereignty, which have now passed to me,” Charles said in a speech before
swearing an oath.
Britain’s King Charles III speaks during a meeting of the Accession Council inside St James’s Palace in London on September 10, 2022, to proclaim him as the new King.
“In taking up
these responsibilities, I shall strive to follow the inspiring example I have
been set.”
Eight trumpeters
accompanied the proclamation that was followed by a rousing three cheers for
the new king by red-jacketed Coldstream Guards soldiers, doffing their
distinctive bearskin hats.
Ceremonial gun
salutes boomed simultaneously across the UK and the proclamation — a relic from
the past where the new monarch needed to be announced to their subjects — was
also read publicly in Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales.
Charles
automatically became monarch upon the queen’s death aged 96 on Thursday, but
the proclamation is the latest step in the set piece 10-day program building up
to her state funeral.
An emotional
Charles set the tone for his reign in a televised address on Friday in which he
hailed his “darling mama” for her “unswerving devotion” during her
record-breaking seven decades on the throne.
The speech
dominated the front pages of Britain’s newspapers on Saturday, with his
heartfelt tribute to his mother headlining the Daily Telegraph, Daily Express,
Daily Mail, and The Sun.
Charles looking pensive
as he arrived at Buckingham Palace for the first time as king made the
front-page image on The Independent, The Guardian, and The Times, which also
carried the words “God Save the King”.
The new king also
named his elder son and heir Prince William, 40, as the new Prince of Wales,
while expressing love for his younger son Harry and daughter-in-law Meghan.
The move means
William’s wife Kate assumes the Princess of Wales title once held by his mother
and Charles’ ex-wife, the late Princess Diana.
‘Have to move on’
Crowds have massed outside Buckingham Palace both to mourn the queen and
to wish Charles well, greeting him with cheers and even kisses when he arrived
from Scotland on Friday.
Charles — who has
seen his popularity recover in recent years from the time of Diana’s death in a
1997 car crash — takes the throne at a moment of deep anxiety in Britain over
the spiraling cost of living and international instability caused by the war in
Ukraine.
Flowers laid by well-wishers are pictured at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh on September 10, 2022, two days after Queen Elizabeth II died at the age of 96.
The constitutional
monarch, who is supposed to remain outside politics, has intimated he will now
steer clear of pronouncements on issues that he has previously been outspoken
on such as climate change.
British Prime
Minister Liz Truss — only appointed by the late monarch on Tuesday — offered
the nation’s support to Charles in parliament on Friday as she acknowledged the
“awesome responsibility” upon Charles.
At their first
formal audience at Buckingham Palace, Charles told her his mother’s death was
“the moment I’ve been dreading, as I know a lot of people have, but you try and
keep everything going”.
The speaker of the
House of Commons and selected senior MPs swore allegiance to the new king on
Saturday and Charles was meeting Truss again, plus the cabinet and the heads of
the opposition parties.
Buckingham Palace
revealed Charles and other members of the royal family would observe an
extended mourning period from now until seven days after her funeral.
The date of the
funeral, which will be attended by heads of state and government, has yet to be
officially announced but is expected to be on Monday, September 19.
British security
officials are planning what has been dubbed likely the “biggest policing and
protective operation” in UK history as London gears up to host leaders from
across the globe.
US President Joe
Biden has said he will attend. The Kremlin said Russian President Vladimir
Putin — at loggerheads with the West over his invasion of Ukraine — will not.
But Putin did
offer Charles “his sincerest congratulations” on ascending to the throne.
“I wish Your
Majesty success, robust health, and above all the best,” the Kremlin leader
said in a telegram.
Queen’s last journey
While the government has said there is no obligation on organizations to
suspend business during its 10-day mourning period, many are doing so out of
respect.
England’s Premier
League postponed all matches this weekend, while railway and postal workers
called off strikes over pay amid soaring inflation and spiraling energy prices.
English cricket
however bade farewell to the queen as the Oval ground fell silent when play
resumed in the test match against South Africa after being halted following her
passing.
Members of the Coldstream guards perform as the Principal Proclamation of Britain’s new King, King Charles III, is read from the Friary Court balcony of St James’s Palace in London, on September 10, 2022.
Elizabeth’s body
has so far remained at her beloved Scottish retreat of Balmoral where she died
and is expected to be transported by road to the Palace of Holyroodhouse in
Edinburgh on Sunday.
Senior royals
including the queen’s other children Princess Anne and Princes Andrew and
Edward viewed flowers and greeted well-wishers outside Balmoral on Saturday.
On Monday, the
coffin is due to be taken in procession along the Royal Mile to the magnificent
St Giles’ Cathedral, where a service will be held.
From the Scottish
capital, it is due to travel to London on Tuesday to lie in state for several
days.
Officials expect
more than one million people to file past the catafalque in Westminster Hall,
the oldest part of the UK parliament complex, before the televised funeral
service at Westminster Abbey opposite.
The funeral for
the queen — who came to the throne aged just 25 in 1952 — will be a public
holiday in the form of a Day of National Mourning.
Charles’s coronation, an
elaborate ritual steeped in tradition and history, will take place in the same
historic surroundings, as it has for centuries, on a date to be fixed.
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