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King Charles III Declared Monarch, Prince & Princess of Wales View Floral Tributes at Windsor

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King Charles III Declared Monarch, Prince & Princess of Wales View Floral Tributes at Windsor

There is quite a bit of news this Saturday; here are some headlines:

  • King Charles III has been formally declared the nation’s new monarch.
  • Funeral plans for the Queen have been announced; the service will be at 11am local time (6am EDT) on Monday, September 19. 
  • The Prince and Princess of Wales have viewed floral tributes at Windsor Castle and spoken with well-wishers. The Prince invited the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to join them. 
  • The Prince of Wales releases a personal statement with reflections about his grandmother. 

We’ll begin with the appearance of the Prince and Princess of Wales with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex at Windsor. Reporters say the crowds broke into applause as the two couples approached them.

The two couples as they arrived at Cambridge Gate. 

A view of the Prince and Princess.

We continue to see enormous crowds at royal residences.

This view of the Long Walk gives you a sense of how many people gathered at Windsor Castle late this afternoon.

The couples as they looked at the massive piles of floral arrangements and cards.

There are specific actions regarding flowers left at royal residences.

Flowers left at Windsor Castle are brought inside the castle every evening. 

The next day they are placed on the Castle Chapter grass on the south side of St George’s Chapel and Cambridge Drive.

The Prince and Princess of Wales. 

Taking a closer look at some of the floral tributes.

It has to be an immense amount to absorb. 

The Prince with a young man. 

The two couples spent much of their time speaking with people gathered at the castle.

More from the Washington Post.

The thousands who flocked to Windsor on a sunny day were in their thrall, as the couples gratefully accepted flowers, talked to parents and children at length, shook hands and accepted heartfelt condolences.

From The Mirror’s coverage: 

William was heard telling one well-wisher that the days following the queen’s death had been “so surreal”.

“We all thought she was invincible,” he said.

More from this Hello story.

Dressed in black, the royals looked sombre as they stopped to shake the hands of teary fans who were standing behind a barrier. They were surrounded by police protection as they made their way around the crowds.

Roya Nikkhah of The Times of London reports, “An emotional Princess of Wales told a group of children that Prince Louis said of #TheQueen “At least Grannie is with Great Grandpa now” while another well-wisher said “It was really nice” to see William, Harry, Kate, and Meghan together.

A video of the Prince and Princess of Wales as they speak with those gathered outside the castle.  

Despite the circumstances, there were moments of levity.

Another look at the Princess.

Hello reports “At one point William was handed a miniature Paddington Bear toy, after the late monarch captured the hearts of the public during a skit with the famous character during her Jubilee celebrations.” Below, the Prince reads a card.

Another video. 

The two couples spent about 40 minutes looking at the flowers and speaking with people before waving goodbye.  

Here is one more brief video. 

There were similar scenes today in Scotland.

Here you see people in line at Balmoral. 

More from The Guardian. 

Prince Andrew, his daughters Eugenie and Beatrice, Prince Edward and Sophie, and Princess Anne had driven to Crathie Kirk, the church close to Balmoral where the Queen and her family worshipped every Sunday during her holidays on Deeside, for a brief, private service shortly before 2pm on Saturday.

As they returned to Balmoral, their convoy stopped at the narrow granite bridge over the River Dee to allow the family to greet about 150 well-wishers, who had been waiting patiently for up to 45 minutes behind a crowd barrier.

Sophie, Countess of Wessex. 

A video from Balmoral.

Princess Anne and her husband, Sir Tim Laurence. Behind them, Princess Anne’s children Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips.

Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie.

On Tuesday, Princess Anne will accompany her mother’s coffin as it travels from Scotland to RAF Northolt outside London.

The Daily Mail reports, “The family spent just under 10 minutes intently reading the tributes and admiring the flowers before they returned inside Balmoral Castle.”

At the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh, the long lines also continued. 

The crowds at Buckingham Palace are at another level altogether. Here you see members of the public lined up to get access to Buckingham Palace to lay flowers.

Another view of the crowds today.

Flowers left at Buckingham Palace are being cleared every night and taken to Hyde Park and Green Park.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Earlier today, King Charles III was officially declared the nation’s new monarch following a meeting of the Accession Council.

More from the Washington Post’s coverage. 

The queen’s eldest son and successor Charles was officially proclaimed Britain’s monarch Saturday in a pomp-filled ceremony steeped in ancient tradition and political symbolism — and, for the first time, broadcast live on television and online. …the accession ceremony was a key constitutional and ceremonial step that introduced the new monarch to the country, a relic of a time before mass communications. 

Saturday’s accession ceremony ended with a royal official publicly proclaiming King Charles III to be the country’s new monarch from a balcony at the palace. In centuries past, this would have been the first official confirmation the public had of their new sovereign.

Below you see (from l to r) Prince William, the Queen Consort, Lord President of the Council Penny Mordaunt, and Britain’s Prime Minister Liz Truss at this morning’s meeting.

Below, Garter Principle King of Arms, David Vines White, reads the proclamation of Britain’s new King, King Charles III, from the Friary Court balcony of St James’s Palace.

Prince Michael of Kent, Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester and Prince Edward, Duke of Kent as the Principal Proclamation is read.

Tomorrow there will be Proclamations in Edinburgh, Cardiff, and Belfast.

As part of today’s events, the King makes a personal declaration. 

NOTE: This is a grossly underreported explanation of the accession process; this link takes you to a Royal Family video that covers the entire series of events.

The King also had a number of audiences today with cabinet officials. Below, with Prime Minister Liz Truss.

The Prime Minister will accompany the King when he travels next week. More from The Telegraph’s coverage. 

Liz Truss will join the King as he leads “services of reflection” around the United Kingdom, Downing Street has said.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said she would travel with the King to Scotland on Monday, followed by visits to Northern Ireland on Tuesday and Wales on Friday. “The Prime Minister believes it is important to be present for what will be a significant moment of national mourning around the United Kingdom,” the spokesman said.

In this photo, the King is with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, Liberal Democrat Leader Sir Ed Davey, and SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford.

The Queen Consort, the King, and the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby.

The pair also did an impromptu walkabout as they returned as they returned to Clarence House, their official residence in London.

The crowds were delighted to see the couple as they returned from Buckingham Palace. 

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Here is the plan for tomorrow, via this BBC’s Day-by-Day Guide covering events from now through the funeral(a very helpful page). 

  • The Queen’s oak coffin, which sits in the ballroom at Balmoral Castle, will be transported by her gamekeepers to a waiting hearse.
  • Her body will depart Balmoral at around 10:00, proceeding slowly on the six-hour journey to Edinburgh along more than 175 miles (280km) by road.
  • The coffin will arrive at the Palace of Holyroodhouse – the official residence of the British monarch in the Scottish capital – and lie in the Throne Room.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

In the bullet point headlines, I mentioned that the Prince of Wales released a statement today. Here is the content of that statement.

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Larsa

Sunday 11th of September 2022

What an unbelievable past few days. May Her Majesty rest in eternal peace. Light in some of the darkness was seeing the newly minted Prince and Princess of Wales. Catherine looked lovely yesterday despite the circumstances. I wonder if she has a rotation of black outfits ready for such situations as this; I'm sure she does. The first thing I thought was that her dress definitely looked like a blue JP she wore in 2019. A very simple and fitting look for yesterday's walkabout. Prayers for the new King, Queen, and the Waleses during the difficult days ahead.

Mrs Cambridge

Wednesday 14th of September 2022

@Larsa, They all do (have mourning clothes) standing by "just in case" so they don't "get caught short" like the then Princess Elizabeth did when she was in Kenya with her husband on a Commonwealth Tour during which her father, the King, died unexpectedly.

Zell

Sunday 11th of September 2022

How BEAUTIFUL AND MOVING to see the Prince and Princess of Wales with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, all four among the crowds! To me, this is Exactly how it should be, the "Fab Four" united in grief, their only concern (at least, at this time), to join together to pay tribute to the Queen. Prince William did the right thing to invite his brother and sister-in-law, and they did the right thing to accept. These two brothers have lost their brotherly connection, and regardless of who is right or wrong, that is a sorrowful break to grieve alone, especially when their Beloved grandmother has just died. I hope with all my heart that some kind of connection may sustain them all, through the remainder of this painful year of such a deep loss of their grandmother. At the heart of it, they are just as human as we all are. I wish them all well, with my deepest condolences, to them all. Each lady looked beautiful and all four interacted with the crowds beautifully. It did my heart good to see all four of them like this.

Deliane

Sunday 11th of September 2022

thank you so very much, Susan, for preparing these thoughtful, thought-filled, caring, detailed posts for us! !

I have been deeply surprised by how moved I have felt- am still feeling- over this, yes- historical event- but so 'removed' from me? a U.S. citizen..

in addition to the glowing, wonderful tributes to the Queen (by heads of state, journalists, missives/posts from people all over the world..)-- I have come to realize that her role WAS, actually, 'political' after all! profoundly so! but in a manner that is not oft spoken of-- a meaning of the word/concept that harkens from another age-- ? perhaps that meaning can come return..

it was after learning that she met, successively, with 15 prime ministers-- every week, for 70 years! ! not as an obligation but bestowed? as a courtesy. accorded with that utmost respect, a private audience-- wow. think of the wisdom. and add to that the 100+ ? nurtured, delicately tempered relationships with the world's heads of state! !

that is power. 'diplomacy..' is not a strong enough word for that kind of power. it is not brash, or measured in $billions, or related to multi-national-corporate power, or electioneering, campaigning.. but it is the quiet 'P'ower that can hold a continent, or hemisphere, or world together.. that's all!

so all the criticisms that royalty is 'just pomp and circumstance'.. 'just a boost to tourism'.. ridiculously old-fashioned, etc.. are short-sighted, imho--

in a country (U.S.) wherein elections have been fraught (and frighteningly so), parties polarized, each term careening towards Left or Right, I wonder whether the balance, the consistency, the DIPLOMACY of a lifetime of quiet, measured, thoughtful 'wisdom' (what a concept) wouldn't be welcome... sigh--

anyways. soapbox rant over?

I loved King Charles III's first address. he even got in the nod to Shakespeare.. ah, there is (arguably) no more beautiful adieu than Horatio's! and the Prince of Wales'/Williams written word statement was deeply affecting, as well.. the British, the citizens of the Commonwealth, and we!(the rest of the world) can breathe in relief that there are TWO Kings at the ready to take on the noble mantle of Elizabeth II!

Claudia

Sunday 11th of September 2022

A little note - the Leader of the Labour Party is also knighted, Sir Keir Starmer. He was knighted in 2014 for services to Law and Justice.

Thank you for your excellent coverage as always Susan!

admin

Sunday 11th of September 2022

Thank you, Claudia!

Kate Admirer

Sunday 11th of September 2022

This is what love and service and gratitude and grief looks like.

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