British royals begin official mourning of Queen’s death

September 10, 2022 00:00:00

Britain's King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort, walk past floral tributes left outside Buckingham Palace in London, on Friday, a day after Queen Elizabeth II (inset) died at the age of 96. On the right, the National Flag in Bangladesh flies half-mast as three-day mourning has been declared in the country — AFP / Focus Bangla

LONDON, Sept 9 (AFP): King Charles III and the royal family on Friday began observing a mourning period for Queen Elizabeth II that will last until seven days after her state funeral, royal officials said.

"Following the death of Her Majesty The Queen, it is His Majesty The King's wish that a period of Royal Mourning be observed from now until seven days after The Queen's Funeral," the palace said in a statement.

"The date of the funeral will be confirmed in due course," it added.

The mourning period will be observed by members of the family, household staff and troops committed to ceremonial duties.

Flags at royal residences will remain at half-mast until the morning after the final day of royal mourning.

Royal residences will close until after the funeral.

Officials advised people wanting to lay flowers at Buckingham Palace to do so at dedicated sites in the nearby Green Park or Hyde Park.

An online Book of Condolence has been opened on the official royal website, royal.uk.

Charles III will be officially proclaimed monarch this (Saturday) morning at a meeting of the Accession Council, Buckingham Palace said.

The formal body overseeing the succession from Queen Elizabeth II will meet from 10:00 am (0900 GMT), with a first public pronouncement from a balcony of St James's Palace in London at 11:00 am.

After seven decades, the United Kingdom has a new woman to call queen.

Charles' wife, Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, will be known as Queen Consort - a title that came with Queen Elizabeth II's blessing after years of contention, dating back to the days before she even married Prince Charles.

It wasn't always a given that the 75-year-old Camilla would take the title, even though it gives her none of the sovereign's powers.

While the wife of a king is traditionally crowned queen, the question of what title Camilla would hold when Charles became king had been a tricky one for many years.