Prince Charles Philip Arthur George has formally been Proclaimed King Charles III at a historic ceremony at St James’s Palace on Saturday morning.
Gatekeepers News reports that the King made a personal declaration about the death of the Queen and made an oath to preserve the Church of Scotland – because in Scotland there is a division of powers between church and state.
This comes after the King pledged to serve the nation with the same “unswerving devotion” as the late Queen had during her 70-year reign in an emotional first address.
Lord President Penny Morduant Chaired the first public proclamation which took place from the Friar Court balcony of St James’s Palace in London at 11:00, accompanied by centuries-old pageantry, with trumpeters playing a fanfare and gun salutes fired in Hyde Park and at the Tower of London.
The ceremony is a moment in history.
This is the first time the Accession Council proceedings are seen live.
Charles became King the moment his mother died, but the Accession Council is held as soon as possible after the death of a sovereign to make a formal proclamation of the successor.
The first part saw the Queen declared dead, the name of the new king read out, and a document signed, and read out from a balcony – it will also be read in Belfast, Cardiff and Edinburgh.
The second part saw King Charles make a personal declaration.
His coronation may not be for many months yet.
Flags lowered in mourning for the late Queen will fly full-mast after the Accession Council, which will be televised for the first time.
A wave of further proclamations continue to take place across the UK until Sunday, when flags will return to half-mast.
Among those in attendance were Camilla, Charles’s wife of 17 years who now has the title of Queen Consort, the King’s son, William, the new Prince of Wales, the Prime Minister, Liz Truss, All Previous Prime Ministers Alive among the around 200 dignitaries were present.
Although they are not part of the formal proclamation, the words “the Queen is dead, long live the King” were heard afterwards.
On Friday, King Charles was met by cheers and shouts of “God save the King!” as he met people in the crowds who had gathered at Buckingham Palace.
Later, he gave his televised address, expressing a wish that Prince William and his wife Catherine would – as the new Prince and Princess of Wales – “continue to inspire and lead our national conversation”.
