King Charles III promises “service for life” in first speech

In his first address to the nation as monarch on Friday, King Charles III vowed to continue Queen Elizabeth II’s “lifetime service” as Britain ushers in a new era under a new sovereign. The queen’s extraordinary reign was celebrated, celebrated and debated around the world.

Charles, who spent much of his 73 years preparing for the role of king, addressed a nation that mourned the only British monarch most people alive today have ever known. He assumes the throne at a time of uncertainty, both for his country and for the monarchy itself.

He spoke of his “deep sadness” over his mother’s death and called her an inspiration.

“I renew this promise of lifetime service to all today,” he said in a 9.5-minute recorded speech, delivered with a framed photograph of the Queen on the table in front of him.

“As the Queen herself did with such unwavering devotion, I now solemnly pledge to uphold the constitutional principles at the heart of our nation as long as God gives me,” he said.

The King’s speech was televised and broadcast at St Paul’s Cathedral, where around 2,000 people attended the Queen’s funeral. The funeral was attended by Prime Minister Liz Truss and members of her government.

As the country began a 10-day period of mourning, people from across the world gathered outside British embassies to pay their respects to the Queen, who died on Thursday at Balmoral Castle in Scotland.

At military installations in London and the UK, cannons fired 96 rounds in an elaborate 16-minute salute for each year of the Queen’s life.

In Britain and its former colonies, widespread admiration for Elizabeth herself sometimes mingled with the institution and imperial history she symbolized.

On his first full day as king, Charles left Balmoral and flew to London to meet Truss, who had been arranged by the Queen two days before her death.

He arrived at Buckingham Palace, the monarch’s London home, for the first time as a sovereign, stepping out of an official Bentley limousine with Queen Consort Camilla to the cheers of the crowd: “Well done, Charlie!” and the national song. hymn, now called “God Save the King”. A woman kissed him on the cheek.

Under intense scrutiny and pressure to prove he can be loving and real, Charles slowly made his way through the flowers piled at the palace gates for his mother. The mood was both sad and solemn.

The monarch’s seismic shift comes at a time when many Britons are grappling with the energy crisis, rising cost of living, the war in Ukraine and the fallout from Brexit.

At the end of the second Elizabethan era, hundreds of people spent the night in mourning outside the gates of Buckingham Palace and other royal residences, as well as at British embassies around the world. Some came simply to pause and reflect.

Financial official Giles Cudmore said the queen was “just consistent in everything, in every way”.

At Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh, April Hamilton was in mourning with her daughter, fighting back tears.

“It’s just a big change that’s going to happen,” he said. “I’m trying to ride it today.”

Day-to-day politics came to a halt as lawmakers paid tribute to the monarch in parliament for two days, starting with a special session in which Truss called the queen “the nation’s greatest diplomat”.

High-level lawmakers will also be sworn in by King Charles III.

Meanwhile, many sporting and cultural events have been canceled out of respect and some businesses, including the Selfridges department store and Legoland theme park, have closed their doors. The Bank of England postponed the session for a week.

While Elizabeth’s death marked a monumental change for some, everyday life in Britain continued elsewhere, with children at school and adults at work struggling with concerns about inflation.

Charles, who became monarch after the death of his mother, will be officially crowned king in a special ceremony on Saturday. The new king is scheduled to visit the UK in the coming days.

The queen’s coffin will be taken to London, where she will be cremated at Westminster Abbey before her funeral, scheduled for 19 September.

Elizabeth was Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a symbol of constancy in a turbulent era that saw the decline of the British Empire and turmoil within her scandal-plagued family.

The impact of losing Elizabeth will be unpredictable. The public’s enduring love for the Queen has helped sustain the monarchy through family scandals, including the divorce of Prince Charles and Princess Diana, but Charles is not as popular.

“Charles will never replace him, you know,” said Mariam Shervan, 31, of London.

Like many, he referred to Elizabeth as a grandmother figure. Others compared her to mothers or grandmothers.

But across the world, his death revealed mixed emotions about the nation and the institutions he represented.

Some football fans in Ireland cheered.

In India, once the “crown jewel” of the British Empire, businessman Diren Singh described his personal grief over her death, but added: “I don’t think we have a place for kings and queens in the world today.”

To some, Elizabeth was a queen whose coronation gleamed with a staggering 3,106 carats of diamond shards mined from the shadowy mines of South Africa, a monarch who inherited an empire they resented.

After she became queen, tens of thousands of Kikuyus in Kenya were taken to camps by British settlers under the threat of a local Mau Mau rebellion. Across the continent, nations rejected British rule and chose independence during their first decade on the throne.

He presided over a power that was sometimes criticized for giving talks on democracy to African countries but denying many of its citizens visas to visit and experience Britain firsthand.

While the worldwide fascination with Britain’s Queen is unnerving to some, others feel a personal connection to the woman who has appeared everywhere, from notes used across continents to television shows like “The Crown” that stop production. in his honor.

Adi Trivedi, a 33-year-old British lawyer who lives in Paris, called Elizabeth “a model of humility, a model of duty that removes ego from public office”. He hopes to soon join the mourners at Buckingham Palace so that “we can truly celebrate the life of Queen Elizabeth II together.”