A crowning moment. The death of Queen Elizabeth II marked the beginning of her son King Charles III‘s reign on the throne, launching into motion a series of carefully prepared protocols to ease the transition of power.
A new reign. After decades of preparations, Prince Charles is now the king of England. The transition began as soon as his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died on Thursday, September 8, at age 96. “The death of my beloved mother, Her Majesty The Queen, is a moment of the greatest sadness for me and all […]
“My mother’s reign was unequaled in its duration, its dedication and its devotion,” Charles told the Ascension Council — which included all of the members of the Privy Council as well as the Lord Mayor and Aldermen of the City of London and high commissioners of realm Commonwealth countries — on September 10. “Even as we grieve, we give thanks for this most faithful life. I am deeply aware of this great inheritance and of the duties and heavy responsibilities of sovereignty which have now passed to me.”
A new monarch. King Charles III succeeded the British throne in September 2022 upon the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II. “The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon,” Buckingham Palace announced. “The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow.” Charles became the monarch […]
He continued by promising to follow in Queen Elizabeth’s footsteps as the new leader of the United Kingdom. “In this purpose, I know that I shall be upheld by the affection and loyalty of the peoples whose sovereign I have been called upon to be, and in the discharge of these duties, I will be guided by the council of their elected parliaments.”
“I take up my new duties with immense gratitude for the privilege of having been able to serve as Prince of Wales. That ancient title, dating from the time of those great Welsh rulers, like Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, whose memory is still rightly honored, I now pass to my son, [Prince] William, whose love for this corner of the Earth is made all the greater by the years he himself has spent here,” he said in a speech at Welsh Parliament.
Charles returned to London ahead of the queen’s funeral on Monday, September 19. After a ceremony at Westminster Abbey, Queen Elizabeth’s body was transported to Windsor, where she and late husband Prince Philip, who died in April 2021, will be “buried together,” according to the royals’ official website. The official period of mourning will come to an end on September 26, following Charles’ decision to extend it from the traditional 12 days.
Ahead of his mother’s funeral, Charles laid a handwritten card on Queen Elizabeth’s casket. “In loving and devoted memory,” he wrote in the message, before signing it with his official royal signature of “Charles R.” Throughout the ceremony, the king was openly emotional and he became teary-eyed when “God Save the King” was sung in his honor at the end of the ceremony. Before the procession out of the chapel began, the Imperial Crown, orb and scepter were removed from atop the queen’s casket before Charles gave one final bow to his late mother and former queen. The Imperial Crown will next been seen at Charles’ coronation, as a symbol of his new role as king.
The royal line of succession has been shaken up and moved around — but where do members of the British royal family stand when it comes to their place in line to the throne? Queen Elizabeth II had been head of the Commonwealth since 1952 when she died in September 2022 at the age of […]
Operation Golden Orb will continue until the new king is formally crowned in a coronation ceremony, which will likely take place in 2023. (Queen Elizabeth’s own coronation took place in 1953, 16 months after her father’s death.) Thus far, the royal patriarch has offered no information about his plans for the event, which will likely reflect his desire for a “slimmed down” monarchy. One thing royal watchers do know, however, is that it the ceremony will be held in Westminster Abbey, which has played host to all British coronations since 1066.
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