King Charles III led senior royals, including the Duke of York and the Princess Royal, in a sombre military procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles’ Cathedral today. Thousands of Scots jammed into Edinburgh’s tiny streets to get a view of the Queen’s coffin.
From 2.35 p.m. this afternoon, women could be heard yelling “God bless the Queen” as the procession drove through the Scottish capital. Dogs’ howls broke the hush, and a sea of well-wishers held up their smartphones to record the momentous occasion.
The Royal Standard and a floral wreath were placed atop the Queen’s oak coffin, which was carried from the Palace to the cathedral where her family and a crowd from all facets of Scottish society would attend a ceremony of gratitude for her life.
Nine different flowers, including white spray roses, white freesias, white button chrysanthemums, and dried white heather, were arranged in a wreath that was placed on her coffin. The wreath also included pittosporum, hebe, rosemary, thistles, and leaves.
The casket is expected to spend 24 hours in the church resting.
The Guard of Honour and Band met the procession before it entered the cathedral, while the High Constables and the Baillie’s Guard were stationed under the Colonnade. The band played one line of the national anthem as the guard of honour saluted and the casket came.
The bearer party then assumed its flanking position after being located by the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The King’s Body Guard for Scotland located the escort party, which was followed by royal automobiles accompanied by members of the royal family. They moved toward the back of the procession and took up positions close to the hearse.
A shrouded and muffled pipe band with drums escorted the guard of honour.
Before this afternoon’s sombre procession, Charles and the Queen Consort went on an impromptu walkabout to look at floral tributes left outside the Palace of Holyroodhouse. Charles looked to wipe away a tear as he grieved for his late mother.
As his limousine passed through the Scottish capital at the beginning of a visit of the home countries, the king was clearly moved to tears by screams of “God Save the King.”
Following his wife Camilla, the Queen Consort, he exited the vehicle and addressed the people, thanking them for attending and extending their best wishes.
Charles and Camilla travelled to the Palace of Holyroodhouse for a day of engagements, which included visiting the Scottish Parliament to hear condolence speeches and seeing the Queen’s coffin in the throne chamber before it was transported 1,200 yards to St. Giles’ Cathedral.
A small number of dignitaries met the newlyweds as their plane touched down at Edinburgh Airport, including Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who looked to be having a short, sincere talk with the future king.
The King earlier looked to be in tears as he pledged to “faithfully follow” his mother’s example and talked of feeling the “weight of history” at a gathering of both Houses of Parliament at Westminster Hall in London to offer their condolences to the new monarch.
During this time of sorrow for the Queen, working members of the royal family will attend five formal engagements while dressed in military uniform.
The procession to Westminster Hall and service of prayer and contemplation, the vigil at Westminster Hall, the state funeral at Westminster Abbey, and the committal ceremony at St. George’s Chapel Windsor are among them.
The Duke of York, however, won’t dress in uniform as a non-working member of the royal family other than as a particular gesture of respect for the Queen during the closing vigil in Westminster Hall, according to insiders.
The King and the Queen Consort will attend the ceremony at St. Giles’ Cathedral, which will be presided over by Reverend Calum MacLeod and honour the life of the Queen and her relationship to Scotland.
The First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, is scheduled to read from Ecclesiastes, and other speakers include Samuel Nwokoro, a student from Nigeria, the Right Reverend Dr. Iain Greenshields, the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, and others.
Mourners will enter the church to music performed by the St. Giles’ Cathedral Choir under the direction of Master of Music Michael Harris.
Jordan English, the St. Giles’ Cathedral’s assistant organist, will perform the instrument.
The national anthem will conclude the service before the royal party departs.
The casket will then be available for the public to see and pay their respects for 24 hours before being transported to London to lay in state.
The Vigil of the Princes will be performed by the King and his siblings at 7:20 p.m. Tomorrow night’s flight to London with Princess Anne and her mother in the coffin is anticipated.
The casket will be transported to the State Hearse at 6.55 p.m. after arriving at RAF Northolt in west London. A guard of honour will welcome the casket at Buckingham Palace.
It will be carried by a bearer party from the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards to the Bow Room where it will be set up on trestles in front of King Charles and the Queen Consort. The casket will be watched over by chaplains to the king.
After speaking to MPs and peers for the first time and telling them he could “feel the weight of history” on his shoulders after their own tributes to his cherished mother the Queen, King Charles III seemed on the verge of tears as Parliament sang “God Save the King” today.
As the Lord Speaker and the Commons Speaker offered their sympathies and added, “Deep as our sadness is, we know yours is deeper,” His Majesty likewise seemed saddened.
Today in Edinburgh, King Charles III attended the Ceremony of the Keys at the Palace of Holyroodhouse.
The historic ceremony, which is conducted every time the queen visits the Scottish capital, was only just carried out at the end of June this year, making it one of the late Queen’s last public appearances before she passed away at Balmoral on Thursday.
The King was given the keys to the City of Edinburgh when he arrived this afternoon. The keys were carried by the City Chamberlain on a crimson velvet cushion that had thistles embroidered on each of its four corners and was trimmed with gold braided fringe.
“We, the Lord Provost and the members of the City of Edinburgh Council, welcome Your Majesty to the capital city of your Ancient and Hereditary Kingdom of Scotland and present for your gracious reception the Keys of Your Majesty’s fine City of Edinburgh,” the Lord Provost said at that point.
The queen then followed protocol and gave the councillors and the Lord Provost of Edinburgh the keys, declaring: “I return these keys, being absolutely certain that they cannot be put in finer hands than those of the Lord Provost and Councillors of my good City of Edinburgh.”
Following the Ceremony of the Keys, King Charles conducted a guard review before guiding the procession carrying the Queen’s coffin 1,200 yards along the Royal Mile to St Giles’ Cathedral.
The King acknowledged the hundreds of MPs and peers who had paid homage to his mother during his speech to the gathering gathered in Westminster Hall, including Liz Truss, Sir Keir Starmer, and Boris Johnson.
As he addressed Parliament for the first time as king, Charles paid homage to his “loving mother” by quoting Shakespeare. He stated of the Queen: “As Shakespeare said of the former Queen Elizabeth, she was a pattern to all princes living.”
As he addressed you, he added, “I cannot help but feel the weight of history that surrounds us and serves as a reminder of the fundamental legislative traditions to which members of both Houses devote yourself with such personal dedication, for the welfare of us all.”
With God’s assistance and your advice, Charles said that the late Queen had “established an example of selfless responsibility that I am committed faithfully to follow.”
“I am extremely thankful for sympathy letters, which so beautifully capture what late sovereign loving mother meant to all of us,” he said.
Following that, the hundreds of dignitaries rose for the national song, which brought tears to the eyes of the new King on the day when he would be seen in public with the Queen’s coffin for the first time in Scotland.
The King said he was “determined sincerely to follow” the example set by his mother, the Queen, to the gathering lords and members of parliament in Westminster Hall.
“We assemble today in memory of the incredible span of the Queen’s committed service to her countries and peoples,” he said in closing his first official speech to Parliament as King.
“While still a child, Her Late Majesty swore to serve her country, her people, and to uphold the sacred values of constitutional governance that are the foundation of our country.
She kept this promise with unwavering devotion. She set a good example of selfless service, and I’m determined to follow it faithfully with God’s assistance and your advice.
Before MPs and peers bowed and curtsied as the monarch walked slowly to his throne with Queen Consort, Camilla, there were raucous cheers and cries of “God Save the King” as he drove from Clarence House down The Mall for the historic moment.
This morning, hundreds of politicians, including Sir Keir Starmer, the leader of the Labour Party, Liz Truss, and her predecessor, Boris Johnson, were present in Westminster Hall.
In the almost 1,000-year-old Westminster Hall, the Palace of Westminster’s historic centre, where his mother will lay in state starting on Wednesday evening for four days until her burial on the following Monday, His Majesty received tributes to the Queen. Charles sometimes seemed very moved.
In a ceremony held in Westminster Hall, the Lord Speaker and the Speaker of the Commons offered their condolences to His Majesty. Another unprecedented constitutional occurrence that has never been shown on television was Charles receiving a motion of confidence from both houses of Parliament.
My Lords and House of Commons members:
The House of Lords’ and the House of Commons’ condolence speeches, which so beautifully capture what our late Sovereign, my dear mother The Queen, meant to all of us, have my sincere gratitude. She was “a pattern to all Princes living,” as Shakespeare wrote of the older Queen Elizabeth.
As I address you today, I can’t help but feel the weight of history that hangs over us and serves as a constant reminder of the essential traditions of the Parliament to which Members of both Houses devote themselves with such fervent devotion for the benefit of all of us.
The vital, breathing heart of our democracy is the parliament. The building of this enormous Hall and the relics of the Office to which I have been called are evidence of the age of your traditions.
And the physical reminders of my dearly departed mother that we see all around us, including the Sundial in Old Palace Yard for the Golden Jubilee, the magnificent Stained Glass Window in front of me for the Diamond Jubilee, and, so poignantly and yet to be formally unveiled, your most generous gift to Her Late Majesty to mark the unprecedented Platinum Jubilee that we celebrated only three months ago, the Fountain in New Palace Yard that honours the late Queen’s Silver Jubile
The late Queen’s journey from Buckingham Palace to this Parliament will be marked by the great bell of Big Ben, one of the most potent symbols of our country throughout the world and housed within the Elizabeth Tower, which was also named for my mother’s Diamond Jubilee. On Wednesday.
My Lords and House of Commons members:
We are here today to commemorate The Queen’s extraordinary career of selfless service to her countries and peoples. Her late Majesty vowed to serve her country, her people, and the priceless constitutional ideals that form the foundation of our country while she was still very young.
She kept this vow with the utmost fervour.
She set a good example of selfless service, and I’m determined to faithfully follow it with God’s assistance and your advice.
The Lord Speaker, Lord McFall of Alcluith, declared that the Queen’s “shining example” will continue to inspire people.
Speaking at Westminster Hall, he said: “We saw the opening of the magnificent memorial window, commissioned by both members of Parliament’s Houses, which now adorns the north wall of this historic space, in 2012 when Her Late Majesty visited to Westminster Hall to mark her Diamond Jubilee.
“Like the light that streams through this memorial window, Her Late Majesty’s magnificent accomplishments will live on by perpetually illuminating and enhancing our lives and our national discourse,” said the inscription.
“Your Majesty, even as we lament the passing of our beloved Queen, we and subsequent generations will find courage in her illustrious example.
“Your Majesty, I swear allegiance to you on behalf of the members of the House of Lords.” I hope your life of service, to which you have committed yourself, goes well for you and Her Majesty the Queen Consort.
We are honoured to have you as our King, and we are also very humbled. And in the future years, we look forward to bringing you to this hall and to Parliament a number of other times.
King Charles “pledged to uphold constitutional principles at the heart of our nation” in his first address, according to Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle in a speech to Westminster Hall.
In your first address to the nation, you acknowledged that your life would change as a result of the new responsibilities, according to Sir Lindsay.
“You promised to uphold the fundamental constitutional values that guide our country.
As the early Queen Elizabeth noted in her farewell address to MPs, “These are enormous obligations,” adding that “to be a king and wear a crown is a thing more magnificent to them who behold it than it is pleasant to those that carry it.”
He added: ‘We know you retain the highest esteem, the cherished traditions, the liberties, and responsibilities of our unique history and our form of parliamentary governance.
“We know that you will shoulder those duties that fall on your shoulders with the fortitude and dignity demonstrated by Her late Majesty.”
According to Sir Lindsay, presenting an address to Her Majesty to commemorate revolutions is perhaps “very British.”
The Commons Speaker welcomed the King and Her Majesty, the Queen Consort, on this solemn occasion as he delivered an address on behalf of the lower house to Westminster Hall.
“Members of both Houses of Parliament are gathered here to express our sincere condolences for the loss that the passing of our sovereign lady, Queen Elizabeth, has caused to all of us. We have seen that this loss is felt on a global scale.
“Our late Queen was here to mark the historic occasions, such as the 50th anniversary of the Second World War, a conflict in which she herself served in the armed forces,” he continued.
And we commemorated the 300th anniversary of the 1688–1689 revolutions in 1988.
Perhaps it is very British to honour revolutions with an address to Her Majesty, but those revolutions gave rise to our constitutional liberties and laid the groundwork for a strong monarchy that upholds liberty.
Peers and MPs packed the mediaeval hall to capacity to see the King and Queen Consort.
Along with the party leaders, other attendees included left-leaning Labour MPs like Zara Sultana, John McDonnel, and Jeremy Corbyn, who wouldn’t be considered among the most royalists.
The only sound coming from the crowd was music played by the Band of the Household Cavalry.
The only sounds heard prior to the arrival of the royal family were the sharp clack of staff carried by the Honorable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms, who served as a symbolic bodyguard, and the thud of circling news helicopters outside.
The people lining the passage responded to the King’s apparent speech as he left the hall by bowing and curtsying.
King Charles and the Queen Consort will arrive in Edinburgh around noon and examine an honour guard. The King followed the funeral to St Giles’ Cathedral, the first time he was seen with his mother’s coffin.
Prince William, Prince Harry, and their spouses Kate and Meghan might potentially be there following their surprise reunion outside Windsor Castle on Saturday.
Charles and Camilla will march to St Giles’ Cathedral at 2.35pm. Charles and other royals will follow the hearse along the Royal Mile.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and the Prince and Princess of Wales, who appeared together at Windsor Castle on Saturday, may be among the royal mourners.
Charles will lead some royals on foot, including the Duke of York, Earl of Wessex, Princess Royal, and her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, while others will follow in automobiles.
The casket will be crowned in the church. The public may pay homage after a service.
The King and his brothers conduct the Princes’ Vigil at 7.20pm. Tomorrow evening, Princess Anne will go to London with her mother’s casket.
The casket will be moved to the State Hearse at RAF Northolt at 6.55pm. Guards will receive the coffin at Buckingham Palace.
A bearer party of the Queen’s Company, 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, will take it to the Bow Room where it will be put on trestles. King’s chaplains will guard the casket.
The Countess of Wessex comforted Princess Anne as the royal family watched Queen Elizabeth II’s casket arrive in Edinburgh.
Sophie, 57, was seen placing her hand on the Princess Royal’s back after the coffin arrived in Edinburgh from Balmoral.
Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, Duke of York, Earl and Countess of Wessex watched as soldiers carried the coffin into the Palace.
Royal women curtsied and men bowed to the monarch in a touching moment.
Anne and her husband followed Her Majesty in a limousine during her 180-mile journey.
The Queen will stay at Buckingham Palace tonight before moving to St Giles’ Cathedral tomorrow afternoon, where a large crowd witnessed King Charles’ midday proclamation as head of state.
Princess Anne and Sophie looked teary-eyed at floral tributes to the Queen at Balmoral yesterday.
Thousands of Scottish mourners lined Her Majesty’s coffin procession as she left Balmoral.
Well-wishers gathered silently, sombrely, and respectfully to bid farewell to the woman who was most at home in Scotland.
By the time the procession reached Edinburgh’s Palace of Holyroodhouse after more than six hours, the crowds were 10 deep in places on the famous Royal Mile.
As the procession neared its end, crowds in the Royal Mile threw flowers in front of William Purvis’ hearse and applauded.
As the cortege travelled through Dundee, a lone long-stemmed flower was seen on the hearse windscreen, and farmers paid homage to the Queen with lined-up tractors.
Tomorrow, King Charles and Camilla, Queen Consort, will visit Edinburgh and walk behind his mother’s coffin to St Giles’ Cathedral. The monarch will hold a vigil at the late Queen’s coffin at 7.20pm.
A police motorbike outrider led the hearse through Aberdeenshire yesterday. As the cortege passed through Dundee, a lone long-stemmed flower was seen on the hearse windscreen, and farmers lined up tractors in a field to honour the monarch.
Hundreds lined Ballater’s main street as the Queen’s coffin was driven through; locals considered her a neighbour. Her Majesty and her family often visited Royal Deeside, where they have space to be themselves.
Glenmuick Church bells were rung 70 times after the Queen’s death was announced.
Well-wishers on both sides of the road in sombre balloon threw flowers at the hearse. The hearse slowed to a fast walking pace so mourners could see the royal standard-draped coffin and the wreath of Balmoral flowers, including sweet peas, dahlias, phlox, white heather, and pine fir.
Thousands flock to Edinburgh’s Royal Mile to pay tribute to Queen Elizabeth II.
In a touching gesture, royal women curtseyed and men bowed to the monarch.
Nicola Sturgeon paid respect to the Queen as she started her last trip through the Highlands.
Ms. Sturgeon tweeted, ‘A sad and emotional moment as the Queen departs Balmoral.’ Scotland will honour an outstanding lady for her trek to Edinburgh yesterday.
The Queen’s oak coffin started its voyage from the Queen’s summer retreat in the Highlands, and the first place it visited was Ballater.
Locals in Ballater considered the Queen a neighbour since she and her family routinely visited the Royal Deeside settlement, which she has frequented since infancy.
Tens of thousands saw the first step of the Queen’s farewell trip yesterday.
After Her Majesty departed Balmoral for the final time, many travelled through the night to be along the path.
The Queen’s wood casket draped in the Royal Standard of Scotland reached Edinburgh amid solemnity.
Hundreds lined the main thoroughfare as the Queen’s coffin passed, and stores exhibited photos of her as a symbol of respect.
Glenmuick Church bells were rung 70 times when the Queen’s death was announced.
The vehicle slowed at a quick walking speed so mourners could view the royal standard-draped casket and the wreath of flowers from Balmoral, including sweet peas, dahlias, phlox, white heather, and pine fir.
Aberdeen’s Elizabeth Taylor cried after seeing what she did.
“It was emotional,” she remarked. It showed respect for the Queen. She served her nation up until her death.’
Andrew Brown, 63, watched the procession gently move along the Royal Mile and said, ‘Until now, everything felt strange, but this has brought it all home.’ Seeing the casket and cortege with my own eyes made it more genuine.’
Mr Scott, from Glasgow, said, ‘It’s upsetting, but I’m delighted I got to say goodbye. I believe it’s appropriate that the Queen’s final voyage started at Balmoral.
Edinburgh hairdresser Ashley Coventry: ‘It’s odd. We all expected it. But being here marks history, too. The crowd amazes me. People came from everywhere.’
Ashley was with daughter Hannah, 9, and husband Scott, 39. Scott: ‘The Queen was adored in our home, and it’s a sad day.’
Lynda Amos, 69, and her husband Richard, 67, interrupted their Scottish highlands vacation to visit Edinburgh. The pair lives in Duns, 50 miles south of Edinburgh.
Lynda remarked, “We arrived immediately.” Disappointed. It was shocking since we’d just seen her with Liz Truss. Sad, but a fresh beginning. They’ve always known the Queen. My RAF father was in Kenya when the Queen’s father died. When she travelled back to Britain to become queen, they all stood at attention.
We’ve attended garden parties here. Each year, the Queen stopped through on her route to Balmoral. She made an attempt to dress up. She was charming.
Richard, a chartered surveyor, stated, “Being here raises your hair.”
Thousands of well-wishers welcomed King Charles as he arrived at Buckingham Palace to meet with Commonwealth delegates.
Crowds lined The Mall shouted and waved at Britain’s new king as he was transported in his state Rolls-Royce from Clarence House through the Palace gates at approximately 1pm.
The King was followed by Camilla, Queen Consort, who was also hailed by mourners.
Charles met Commonwealth general secretary Patricia Scotland in the 1844 Room yesterday before attending a reception with High Commissioners and their wives. The King, who was proclaimed yesterday at St. James’s Palace, met with the Dean of Windsor at 3.30pm.
Guests included Foreign Secretary James Cleverly and the Commissioner for Antigua and Barbuda, whose republican Prime Minister is threatening a referendum on ditching the Crown, as well as representatives for Bahamas, Belize, Canada, Grenada, New Zealand, St Christopher and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Tuvalu, and Australia.
The King and Queen will travel the four home countries next week before his mother’s state funeral at Westminster Abbey and burial at St George’s Chapel in Windsor. She died in Balmoral on Thursday, aged 96.