King Charles III was declared monarch of the United Kingdom in a pomp-filled ceremony rich in ancient tradition and political symbolism - an event that was aired live online and on television for the first time.
The 73-year-old Charles officially took his vow as the new King and said that he was "deeply aware" of the "duties and heavy responsibility of sovereignty".
The ceremony on Saturday was followed by gun salutes and the reading of proclamations in London and in the other capital cities of the UK – Edinburgh in Scotland, Belfast in Northern Ireland, and Cardiff in Wales. Several hundred privy councilors, including current Prime Minister Liz Truss and all of her living predecessors, Charles's wife Camilla, and his eldest son and heir William attended the ceremony.
Charles, who spent seven decades as heir apparent, automatically became king when his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died on Thursday. But the accession ceremony was a key constitutional and ceremonial step in introducing the new monarch to the country, a relic of a time before mass communications.
Hours after the ceremony, Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, joined Prince William and Princess Kate at Windsor Castle to view the sea of floral tributes left by the public in honor of the princes’ grandmother.
The 73-year-old Charles officially took his vow as the new King and said that he was "deeply aware" of the "duties and heavy responsibility of sovereignty".
The ceremony on Saturday was followed by gun salutes and the reading of proclamations in London and in the other capital cities of the UK – Edinburgh in Scotland, Belfast in Northern Ireland, and Cardiff in Wales. Several hundred privy councilors, including current Prime Minister Liz Truss and all of her living predecessors, Charles's wife Camilla, and his eldest son and heir William attended the ceremony.
Charles, who spent seven decades as heir apparent, automatically became king when his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died on Thursday. But the accession ceremony was a key constitutional and ceremonial step in introducing the new monarch to the country, a relic of a time before mass communications.
Hours after the ceremony, Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, joined Prince William and Princess Kate at Windsor Castle to view the sea of floral tributes left by the public in honor of the princes’ grandmother.
