British Royal Family

Britain Mourns Queen Elizabeth II as King Charles III Takes the Throne

NBCUniversal Media, LLC Britain has begun a 10-day mourning period, with bells tolling around the country and 96-gun salutes in London and across the UK — one for each year of Queen Elizabeth’s life.

Bells tolled across Britain on Friday and mourners flocked to palace gates to honor Queen Elizabeth II as the country prepared for a new age under a new king. Around the world, her exceptional reign was commemorated, celebrated and debated.

King Charles III, who spent much of his 73 years preparing for the role, met with the prime minister and addressed a nation grieving the only British monarch most people alive today had ever known.

Taking the throne in an era of uncertainty for both his country and the monarchy itself, Charles vowed to carry on her "lifelong service" to the nation.

As the country began a 10-day mourning period, people around the globe gathered at British embassies to pay homage to the queen, who died Thursday in Balmoral Castle in Scotland.

In London and at military sites across the United Kingdom, special guns fired 96 shots in an elaborate, 16-minute salute marking each year of the queen’s life.

In Britain and across its former colonies, the widespread admiration for Elizabeth herself was occasionally mixed with scorn for the institution and the imperial history she symbolized.

Charles arrived at Buckingham Palace, the monarch's London home, for the first time as sovereign, emerging from the official state Bentley limousine to shouts from the crowd of “God save the king!” and “Well done, Charlie!” and the singing of the national anthem, now called “God Save the King.” One woman gave him a kiss on the cheek.

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From left: David Armstrong-Jones, 2nd Earl of Snowdon, Prince William, Prince of Wales, King Charles III, Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester, Anne, Princess Royal and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex walk behind the coffin during the procession for the Lying-in State of Queen Elizabeth II, Sept. 14, 2022, in London
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King Charles III, Prince William, Prince of Wales and Princess Anne, Princess Royal salute the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, adorned with a Royal Standard and the Imperial State Crown, as it arrives at the Palace of Westminster, Sept. 14, 2022, in London. Next to them is Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Prince Andrew, Duke of York.
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Members of the public line the Queen Victoria Memorial and the Mall as King Charles III and members of the royal family walk with Queen Elizabeth II’s flag-draped coffin as it is taken in procession by The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall, Sept. 14, 2022 in London.
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The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard with the Imperial State Crown placed on top, is carried on a horse-drawn gun carriage of the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery, during the ceremonial procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall, London, Sept. 14, 2022.
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Pallbearers from The Queen’s Company, 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards prepare to carry the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II into Westminster Hall on Sept. 14, 2022 in London.
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King Charles III, Anne, Princess Royal, Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, Prince William, Prince of Wales, Prince Andrew, Duke of York, Camilla, Queen Consort, Sir Timothy Laurence, Mr. Peter Phillips, Sophie, Countess of Wessex, Catherine, Princess of Wales, Princess Beatrice and Prince Edward, Duke of Kent seen inside the Palace of Westminster for the Lying-in State of Queen Elizabeth II, Sept. 14, 2022 in London.
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Pallbearers from The Queen’s Company, 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, prepare to place the coffin of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II on a catafalque inside Westminster Hall, at the Palace of Westminster, Sept. 14, 2022, London.
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Catherine, Princess of Wales and Prince William, Prince of Wales leave after a service for the reception of Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin at Westminster Hall, Sept. 14, 2022, London.
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The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II arrives in the Royal Hearse at Buckingham Palace in London on September 13, 2022, where it will rest in the Palace’s Bow Room overnight.
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Seen from the top of the Wellington Arch, the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II is taken in the Royal Hearse to Buckingham Palace in London on September 13, 2022.
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The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II leaves RAF Northolt, west London, from where it will be taken to Buckingham Palace, London, to lie at rest overnight in the Bow Room on September 13, 2022 in London, England.
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Sophie, Countess of Wessex, Edward, Earl of Wessex, Prince Andrew, Duke of York, Vice Admiral Timothy Laurence, Camilla, Queen Consort, Princess Anne, Princess Royal and King Charles III attend a Service of Prayer and Reflection for the Life of Queen Elizabeth II at St Giles’ Cathedral, Sept. 12, 2022 in Edinburgh, Scotland.
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From left, Prince Andrew, King Charles III, Camilla, the Queen Consort, Princess Anne and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, look on as the Duke of Hamilton places the Crown of Scotland on the coffin during the Service of Prayer and Reflection for the Life of Queen Elizabeth II at St Giles’ Cathedral, Edinburgh, Sept. 12, 2022.
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Vice Admiral Timothy Laurence, King Charles III, Princess Anne, Princess Royal, Prince Andrew, Duke of York and Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, stand as the hearse carrying the coffin of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II arrives at St. Giles’ Cathedral after the procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Sept. 12, 2022, in Edinburgh, Scotland.
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King Charles III, Princess Anne, Princess Royal and Prince Andrew, Duke of York, walk behind the procession of Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin, from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles Cathedral, on the Royal Mile, Sept. 12, 2022, where Queen Elizabeth II will lie at rest. Mourners will get the first opportunity to pay respects before the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II as it lies in an Edinburgh cathedral where King Charles III will preside over a vigil.
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King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort, sits in Westminster Hall Sept. 12, 2022, in London, England, to listen to an address to His Majesty in Westminster Hall following the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
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Lord Speaker John McFall, left, and Speaker of the House of Commons Lindsay Hoyle, right, as well as King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort, take part in an address in Westminster Hall Sept. 12, 2022, in London, England. The Lord Speaker and the Speaker of the House of Commons presented an Address to His Majesty on behalf of their respective House in Westminster Hall following the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
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King Charles III inspects the Guard of Honor as he arrives for the Ceremony of the Keys at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Sept. 12, 2022, in Edinburgh, Scotland. The monarch is handed the keys of the city of Edinburgh and welcomed to “your ancient and hereditary kingdom of Scotland” in this ancient ritual. The King then returns them to Edinburgh’s elected officials for safekeeping.
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A corgi lies in front of the flowers at The Long Walk gates in front of Windsor Castle, Sept. 12, 2022, in Windsor, England.
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Vice Admiral Timothy Laurence, Britain’s Sophie, Countess of Wessex and Britain’s Prince Andrew, Duke of York look on as Britain’s Princess Anne, Princess Royal, curtseys before the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, Sept. 11, 2022, in Edinburgh, United Kingdom.
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People gather on the Royal Mile, Edinburgh, Scotland, to watch the cortege carrying the coffin of the late Queen Elizabeth II, draped with the Royal Standard of Scotland, as it completes its journey from Balmoral to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Sept. 11, 2022.
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King Charles III speaks during the Accession Council at St James’s Palace, London, Sept. 10, 2022, shortly after he was formally proclaimed monarch.
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King Charles III with the Prince of Wales, the Queen Consort and Lord President of the Council Penny Mordaunt during the Accession Council at St James’s Palace, London, Sept. 10, 2022. King Charles III was formally proclaimed monarch after the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
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Members of the Coldstream guards line up ahead of the watching public as the Principal Proclamation is read from the balcony overlooking Friary Court after King Charles III is proclaimed King, at St James’s Palace in London, England, Sept. 10, 2022.
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A 21-gun salute by the 105 Regiment Royal Artillery at Hillsborough Castle, Belfast, marks the Proclamation of Accession of King Charles III, Sept. 10, 2022.
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Former British Prime Ministers David Cameron, Boris Johnson, Gordon Brown, Tony Blair, Theresa May and John Major, joined by Baroness Scotland, arrive for a meeting of the Accession Council inside St James’s Palace in London, Sept. 10, 2022, to proclaim King Charles III as the new King.
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The car carrying King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort, arrives at Buckingham Palace with the Union Flag at half mast, Sept. 9, 2022, in London.
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Britain’s King Charles III, left, and Camilla, the Queen Consort, look at floral tributes left outside Buckingham Palace on Sept. 9, 2022, following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, in London. King Charles III, who spent much of his 73 years preparing for the role, planned to meet with the prime minister and address a nation grieving the only British monarch most of the world had known.
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The Death Gun Salute is fired at the Tower of London by the Honourable Artillery Company, British Army, to mark the death of Queen Elizabeth II, in London on Sept. 9, 2022. Ninety-six rounds were fired for each year of the Queen’s life.
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The lights of the Eiffel tower are turned off in memory of Queen Elizabeth II, Sept. 8, 2022 in Paris, France.
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A photo of Queen Elizabeth II is projected onto the sails of the Sydney Opera House, Sept. 9, 2022, in Sydney, Australia.
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European flags fly at half-mast during a meeting of EU energy ministers at the EU headquarters in Brussels, Sept. 9, 2022, a day after the death of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II.
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A rainbow is seen outside of Buckingham Palace on Sept. 8, 2022, in London, England. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-serving monarch, has died at 96 following months of health concerns.
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The official Royal announcement of the death of Queen Elizabeth II is placed on the gates of Buckingham Palace on Sept. 8, 2022, in London, England.
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Mourners lay flowers on the gate of Buckingham Palace in London after it was announced that Queen Elizabeth II has died, Sept. 8, 2022.
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The Union flag flies half mast as people gather at Buckingham Palace on Sept. 8, 2022 in London, England following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
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Mourners gather laying flowers outside Windsor Castle in Berkshire following the announcement of the death of Queen Elizabeth II. Picture date: Thursday September 8, 2022.
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A man lowers the White House U.S. flag to half-mast in Washington, D.C, Sept. 8, 2022, following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
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A Nasdaq billboard pay tribute to the life and legacy of Queen Elizabeth II in Times Square on Sept. 8, 2022 in New York, New York.

As the second Elizabethan Age came to a close, hundreds of people arrived through the night to leave flowers outside the gates of Buckingham Palace and other royal residences. Some came simply to pause and reflect.

Finance worker Giles Cudmore said the queen had “just been a constant through everything, everything good and bad.”

At Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh, mourner April Hamilton stood with her young daughter, struggling to hold back tears.

“It’s just such a momentous change that is going to happen,” she said. “I’m trying to hold it together today.”

Meanwhile, many sporting and cultural events were canceled as a mark of respect, and some businesses — including Selfridges department store and the Legoland amusement park — shut their doors. The Bank of England postponed its meeting by a week.

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby said the queen's death marked an “enormous shift” for Britain and the world.

“A part of our lives we’ve taken for granted as being permanent is no longer there,” he said.

Later Friday, Truss and other senior ministers were expected to attend a remembrance service at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. Charles, who became the monarch immediately upon his mother's death, will be formally proclaimed king at a special ceremony Saturday.

After a vigil in Edinburgh, the queen’s coffin will be brought to London, and she will lie in state for several days before her funeral in Westminster Abbey.

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 disarray in her own family. Members of the royal family had rushed to her side at the family’s summer residence in Balmoral after her health took a turn for the worse.

The impact of Elizabeth's loss will be unpredictable for Britain. She helped stabilize and modernize the monarchy across decades of enormous social change, but its relevance in the 21st century has often been called into question. The public’s abiding affection for the queen had helped sustain support for the monarchy during the family scandals, but Charles is nowhere near as popular.

“Charles can never replace her, you know," said 31-year-old Londoner Mariam Sherwani.

Like many, she referred to Elizabeth as a grandmother figure. Others compared her to their mothers or great-grandmothers.

But around the world, her passing revealed conflicting emotions about the nation and institutions she represented.

In Ireland, some soccer fans cheered.

In India, once the “jewel in the crown” of the British empire, entrepreneur Dhiren Singh described his own personal sadness at her death, but added, “I do not think we have any place for kings and queens in today’s world."

For some, Elizabeth was a queen whose coronation glittered with shards of a stunning 3,106-carat diamond pulled from grim southern African mines, a monarch who inherited an empire they resented.

In the years after she became queen in Kenya, scores of thousands of ethnic Kikuyu were rounded up in camps by British colonizers under threat from the local Mau Mau rebellion. Across the continent, nations rejected British rule and chose independence in her first decade on the throne.

She led a power that at times was criticized as lecturing African nations on democracy but denying many of their citizens the visas to visit Britain and experience it firsthand.

Britain has begun a 10-day mourning period, with bells tolling around the country and 96-gun salutes in London and across the UK — one for each year of Queen Elizabeth’s life.

Charles called his mother’s death “a moment of the greatest sadness for me and all members of my family,” adding: “I know her loss will be deeply felt throughout the country, the Realms and the Commonwealth, and by countless people around the world.”

Some people gathered outside Buckingham Palace wept when officials carried a notice confirming the queen’s death to the wrought-iron gates on Thursday. Hundreds gathered in the rain, and mourners laid heaps of colorful bouquets at the gates.

World leaders extended condolences and paid tribute to the queen.

In Canada, where the British monarch is the country’s head of state, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s eyes were red with emotion as he saluted her “wisdom, compassion and warmth.” In India, once the “jewel in the crown” of the British empire, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted: “She personified dignity and decency in public life. Pained by her demise.”

U.S. President Joe Biden called her a “stateswoman of unmatched dignity and constancy who deepened the bedrock alliance between the United Kingdom and the United States.”

Since Feb. 6, 1952, Elizabeth had reigned over a Britain that rebuilt from a destructive and financially exhausting war and lost its empire; joined the European Union and then left it; and made the painful transition into the 21st century.

She endured through 15 prime ministers, from Winston Churchill to Truss, becoming an institution and an icon — a reassuring presence even for those who ignored or loathed the monarchy.

She became less visible in her final years as age and frailty curtailed many public appearances. But she remained at the center of national life as Britain celebrated her Platinum Jubilee with days of parties and pageants in June.

On Tuesday, she presided at a ceremony at Balmoral Castle to accept the resignation of Boris Johnson as prime minister and appoint Truss as his successor.

In the wake of Queen Elizabeth's death on Thursday, the line of succession at the House of Windsor has changed. Following Her Majesty's death, her eldest son, Charles, was immediately moved into the role of The King of England.
Copyright The Associated Press
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