Princes unite in grief as Queen’s funeral date set
Princes William and Harry and their wives have come together in public to greet well-wishers as a date was set for the Queen’s funeral and Charles was proclaimed king with pomp and ceremony.
The Prince and Princess of Wales and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex arriving to view the messages and floral tributes left by members of the public at Windsor Castle. Photo: Chris Jackson/PA Wire
The estranged brothers made a show of unity outside Windsor Castle, the first time the couples have been seen together since Harry and Meghan withdrew from royal life and moved to the USA.
William’s spokesman said he had invited the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to join him and Kate as they examined flowers and notes and spoke to crowds lining the entrance to the castle.
William and Kate, who have been bestowed the new titles of the Prince and Princess of Wales, spoke to individuals and at one point Kate crouched down to a child who was crying.
Harry and Meghan were handed bunches of flowers which they both accepted.
The royal couples walked separately from one another, with William and Kate greeting people on one side of the road and Harry and Meghan speaking to people on the other.
After about 40 minutes in which the hushed crowd cheered at intervals, the couples departed the Long Walk together in a car driven by William.
Shortly before his appearance, the Prince of Wales issued an official statement saying he would honour his grandmother by “supporting my father, The King, in every way I can”.
Now heir to the thone, 40-year-old William described the Queen as “extraordinary” and said she was “by my side at my happiest moments. And she was by my side during the saddest days of my life”.
“I knew this day would come but it will be some time before the reality of life without Grannie will truly feel real,” he said.
Funeral date set
Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral will be held on Monday 19th September (local time) in Westminster Abbey at 11am and will be a public holiday.
Her coffin will leave her Scottish estate on Sunday (local time) and be driven by hearse through remote highland villages to Scotland’s capital Edinburgh, pausing during its six-hour journey to allow people to pay their respects.
The coffin will then be flown to London on Tuesday (local time) where it will remain at Buckingham Palace before being taken to Westminster Hall to lie-in-state until the funeral.
Leaders from around the world are expected in London for the funeral, including US President Joe Biden, who said on Friday he would attend.
Charles’ coronation as king will take place at a later date, and the timing for that is not yet clear. There was a 16-month gap between Elizabeth becoming queen and her coronation in 1953.
King’s Proclamation ceremony
Meanwhile King Charles III was officially proclaimed Britain’s new monarch in a colourful ceremony laden with pageantry and tradition —the first to be televised.
For most Britons, it was the first such event in their lifetime as Elizabeth was the only monarch they have ever known.
An Accession Council met at St James’s which is the most senior royal palace in the United Kingdom built for Henry VIII in the 1530s.
The council — formed of Privy Counsellors whose centuries-old role has been to advise the monarch — included his son and heir William, wife Camilla and the UK’s new prime minister, Liz Truss, who signed the proclamation of his accession.
Six former prime ministers, senior bishops and a swathe of politicians cried out “God save the King” as the announcement was approved.
In taking up his new responsibilities, King Charles III said he would “strive to follow the inspiring example I have been set” by the late Queen.
Later, trumpets sounded as the proclamation was read out from a balcony known as the Proclamation Gallery and soldiers in traditional scarlet uniforms shouted “hip, hip, hurrah”.
In centuries past, this would have been the first official confirmation the public had of their new sovereign.
Gun salutes rang out in Hyde Park, at the Tower of London and at military sites around the UK and Royal Guard soldiers in the Buckingham Palace courtyard doffed their bearskin hats in a royal salute.
The proclamation was read out in the medieval City of London and at other locations across the UK.
n Australia, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will recommend Governor-General David Hurley issue the Australian proclamation on Sunday morning.
Hurley is then expected to read the proclamation at parliament house at noon on Sunday, followed by a 21-gun salute.
State governors will then make their own proclamations at ceremonies around the country.
On Saturday, Albanese, Hurley and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton laid wreaths to honour the Queen at a parliament house ceremony in Canberra.
“She was a constant reassuring presence,” Albanese said.
The prime minister and Hurley will travel to London on Thursday to attend the funeral.
-with AAP
