BY TUCKER REALS & HALEY OTT –
London — People in Britain and its commonwealth nations woke up on Friday with a new monarch for the first time in most of their lives. King Charles III returned to London from Scotland to meet the prime minister and address the British people for the first time as their monarch.
Buckingham Palace announced that Charles had requested a formal “period of Royal Mourning” for his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, who died on Thursday after a record 70-year reign. The U.K.’s longest-reigning monarch, one of the world’s most enduring and instantly recognizable personalities, died at her beloved summer home in Scotland, Balmoral Castle, at the age of 96.
The following week and a half will see a meticulously orchestrated process of both mourning and constitutional transition play out across Great Britain. It will be colored by the grief of a grateful nation mourning a queen with whom many felt a deep connection.
Tributes continued to pour in from leaders, dignitaries and celebrities from across the globe Friday as thousands of people flocked to Buckingham Palace and the queen’s other homes to lay flowers and notes of thanks for Elizabeth’s lifetime of dedication and service. King Charles showed up with his wife, Queen Consort Camilla, to shake the hands of well-wishers in front of Buckingham Palace.
Follow the latest developments below, as a new era dawns in Great Britain.
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