King Charles walks behind Queen’s coffin as procession heads for St. Giles’ cathedral
Sep 12, 2022, 8:28 AM | Updated: Sep 13, 2022, 10:18 am
Britain's King Charles makes an address at Westminster Hall, following the death of Britain's Queen Elizabeth, in London, Britain, September 12, 2022. (Credit: REUTERS/Henry Nicholls/Pool)
(Credit: REUTERS/Henry Nicholls/Pool)
(CNN) — King Charles III is leading a procession of Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin as it moves from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St. Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh, Scotland, where it will lie until Tuesday evening.
The 73-year-old monarch has been joined on foot by the late Queen’s other children — Princess Anne and Princes Edward and Andrew, while Camilla, the Queen Consort, is traveling in the hearse.
Charles is wearing full day ceremonial uniform with the rank of Field Marshal, and is carrying the Field Marshal Baton given to him by his mother when he was awarded the rank in 2012.
The procession is moving through crowds of onlookers standing in near-total silence on Edinburgh’s streets.
Elizabeth’s coffin is draped in the Royal Standard in Scotland and is dressed with a wreath of flowers, which includes dried white heather from Balmoral.
The hearse is flanked by a bearer party of the Royal Regiment of Scotland as well as a detachment of the King’s bodyguard in Scotland, the Royal Company of Archers.
After processing along the Royal Mile, where, once more, thousands of people have gathered to pay their respects, the coffin will receive a guard of honor from the Royal Company of Archers at the cathedral.
The royal family will then attend a short service of prayer and reflection, joined by a congregation made up “from all areas of Scottish society,” according to Buckingham Palace. The coffin will then lie there for 24 hours to allow the Scottish public to see it.
Following the service, the King will have an audience with Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, in addition to a meeting with the presiding officer of the Scottish Parliament. He will also go to the Scottish Parliament to receive a motion of condolence.
Monday evening, the King and and members of the royal family will mount a vigil of the Queen’s coffin.
Earlier, the King vowed to continue the Queen’s “dedicated service” to the British people in his first address to the UK Parliament.
Camilla, the Queen Consort, accompanied Charles on his first visit to the Palace of Westminster since becoming King. In the ancient Westminster Hall, both Houses of Parliament offered their condolences on his mother’s death.
“We gather today in remembrance of the remarkable span of the Queen’s dedicated service to her nations and people,” the King said. “While very young, her late Majesty pledged herself to serve her country and her people.
“This vow she kept with unsurpassed devotion. She set an example of selfless duty which, with God’s help and your councils, I am resolved faithfully to follow,” Charles continued.
As he concluded his short speech, a rendition of “God Save the King,” the British national anthem, was played.
Following the visit, the monarch and his wife flew to Edinburgh, Scotland, where the Queen had been lying at rest since Sunday. The pair headed straight to the Palace of Holyroodhouse for the Ceremony of the Keys — a tradition whereby the Lord Provost offers the monarch the keys to the city.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
Related: Utah leaders react to the death of Queen Elizabeth II
