Proclamations read out in Commonwealth countries – as it happened

This blog is closing now but you can continue to follow our live coverage on this new blog. Thank you for reading.

The Scottish government has said it is expecting very large crowds to gather along the Royal Mile in Edinburgh to witness the Proclamations announcing the accession of Charles III on Sunday. It has advised anyone wishing to attend are advised to allow plenty of time.

The King’s Body Guard for Scotland (Royal Company of Archers) and the Guard of Honour will march from the Castle Esplanade to the Mercat Cross.

The Lord Lyon King of Arms will then read the Proclamation. This will be followed by a 21 gun salute from Edinburgh Castle.

The procession will then make its way to Edinburgh Castle where The Lord Lyon will read a second Proclamation.

Rebecca Ratcliffe here, taking over from my colleague Tess McClure.

Proclamations in the devolved nations are expected to be made simultaneously at midday in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast.

PA Media has some further detail on the ceremony that is to be held in Cardiff Castle.

It reports:

Up to 2,000 people will be allowed to attend the event, with spaces inside the grounds available on a first come, first served basis. Gates are expected to open at 10am.

Several main roads through the city centre are due to be closed between 7am and 2pm.

Prior to the Proclamation, 26 men of the 3rd Battalion the Royal Welsh - supported by the Band of the Royal Welsh and accompanied by the regimental mascot, a Welsh billy goat called Shenkin - will march from City Hall at 11.25am along Boulevard de Nantes, North Road and Duke Street to Cardiff Castle.

At the castle, the Wales Herald of Arms Extraordinary, Tom Lloyd, will make the proclamation in English and the Lord Lieutenant of South Glamorgan, Morfudd Meredith, will proclaim King Charles in Welsh.

After the readings, members of 104th Regiment of the Royal Artillery will fire a 21-gun salute before the singing of God Save The King and Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau, Wales’ national anthem.
It will be the third time in three days that canon fire has resounded across the city to mark both the Queen’s death and her son Charles’s accession to the throne.

Flags on the castle and council buildings, which were at half-mast were returned to full-mast on Saturday, to coincide with the Reading of the Principal Proclamation of the new monarch in London.

Flags will return to half-mast at 1pm on Sunday after the Proclamation is read in Cardiff.

The Senedd has also been recalled on Sunday at 3pm to allow members to pay tribute to the Queen. However, all other business has been suspended until after the state funeral.

Here’s a brief summary of what’s happened in the last few hours, and overnight in the UK:

• Timing of the State Funeral for the Queen has been confirmed, and will take place at Westminster Abbey on Monday 19th September. Before then, the Queen will lie in-state in Westminster Hall for four days, to allow the public to pay their respects, the royal family has said.

• The Queen’s coffin will on Sunday make its way from Balmoral castle, where she died, to Edinburgh, before flying to London for the state funeral. On its way to Edinburgh, the procession will pass through Aberdeen on Sunday morning, where thousands are expected to turn out and pay their respects.

• New Zealand, Australia and Canada all held proclamation ceremonies to recognise King Charles III as their new head of state. The proclamation ceremonies are a constitutional and ceremonial event that formally transition to a new monarch for the countries.

• Those country leaders have made tributes to the Queen as they recognised her successor. New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern said the country was “filled with sadness for her passing, but also gratitude for the life she led”. Australian PM Anthony Albanese said the Queen was “admired for her devotion to duty, for her commitment to the people of the United Kingdom, to the people of the Commonwealth including Australia and indeed to the world”.

• The prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda has said following the Queen’s death he will call for a referendum on the country becoming a republic within three years. The country will retain a British monarch for now, but prime minister Gaston Browne said a referendum would be “the final step to complete that circle of independence, to ensure that we are truly a sovereign nation”.

• King Charles III held his first audiences at Buckingham Palace on Saturday afternoon, with Prime Minister Liz Truss, members of her Cabinet and opposition leaders, as well as the Archbishop of Canterbury

• Liz Truss to accompany King Charles III on tour of Britain. The UK’s new prime minister will accompany King Charles on a royal tour of Britain’s four nations to lead days of national mourning for his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.

Here’s what we know about how the Queen’s funeral procession is expected to progress across Scotland on Sunday morning.

• 10:00am: The cortege is expected to leave Balmoral Castle, where the Queen died on Thursday. Well-wishers can gather along the route from Balmoral to Edinburgh.

• 10:12: It will first head to the nearby town on Ballater in Aberdeenshire, then travel along the A93, through Aboyne, Banchory and Drumoak.

• 11:20: Expected to arrive in Aberdeen, departing at around 11.40

• 14:00: Arrives in Dundee, and members of the public are invited to pay their respects in safe standing areas along the A90 Forfar Road and Kingsway.

• 1600: The cortege heads to Edinburgh, taking a route past the Scottish parliament. All the pavements along the route from the north of the city to the Scottish parliament will be lined with barriers to allow public viewing.

• From there, the coffin will be taken into the Palace of Holyroodhouse, where it will remain for the night.

New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern has spoken to Liz Truss following the queen’s death. Ardern expressed the ‘great sense of loss felt in New Zealand’ at the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, her office said, and discussed arrangements for the state funeral and New Zealand’s participation.

Ardern also congratulated Truss on her appointment as Prime Minister, and noted that this is a difficult time to have the “privilege of office” leading the UK through the grief at the loss of the Queen.

A New Zealand government spokesperson also said that cabinet would consider options for a memorial service and public holiday at its meeting tomorrow. Unlike Australia, New Zealand has not yet announced a public holiday to mark the Queen’s passing.

Australia has now officially recognised King Charles as the country’s new monarch and head of state, with the Governor General and Executive Council making their public proclamation at Parliament House, followed by a 21 gun salute. Flags will return to full mast as a sign of celebration of the moment, before being returned to half mast at dusk.

Canadian PM Justin Trudeau says parliament will sit on Thursday to enable MPs to pay formal tribute to the Queen.

The prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda has said following the Queen’s death he will call for a referendum on the country becoming a republic within three years, PA reports.
The Caribbean country is one of 14 nations to retain the British monarch as their head of state, with prime minister Gaston Browne signing a document confirming Charles’ status as the new King.
But in the same appearance, Browne said he would push for a republic referendum:

“This is not an act of hostility or any difference between Antigua and Barbuda and the monarchy, but it is the final step to complete that circle of independence, to ensure that we are truly a sovereign nation.

“I’d say probably within the next three years,” he added, when asked for a timeframe on the referendum. Mr Browne had in April called on the Wessexes to use their “diplomatic influence” to achieve “reparatory justice”, and outlined his country’s wish to “one day become a republic”.

Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese is speaking as the country holds its ceremony to recognise King Charles as its new head of state.

Thank you for being here at what is an extraordinary historical event in the history of our nation. There has been an outpouring of grief on the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.

Queen Elizabeth was admired for her devotion to duty, for her commitment to the people of the United Kingdom, to the people of the Commonwealth including Australia and indeed to the world.

In Queen Elizabeth’s own words, that grief is the price we pay for love, is I think a fitting statement on how so many Australians are feeling at this time. Today, we mark formally the new head of state in King Charles III and the proclamation – the first in my lifetime and the first in a majority of Australian’s lifetime - is an historic event.

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol will attend the funeral for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth, his office told Reuters on Sunday.

Australia is formally declaring King Charles III its new head of state.

The ceremony has begun with some brief remarks by governor-general David Hurley, who began by paying tribute to the Queen:

Her example of selfless service, devotion to duty and compassion for others is an enduring legacy and indeed a gift for us all.

He continued with comments on the “weighty responsibility” that faced King Charles as monarch.

And today, this meeting of the federal executive Council will proclaim Charles III as king of Australia. It is a weighty responsibility. Australia is an unfinished product. It is now entering a new era.

New Zealand has concluded its ceremony to recognise King Charles as its new head of state, with two 21-gun salutes. A few hundred people gathered on parliament’s lawns for the event.

Australia is beginning its own ceremony of proclamation now.

11 Sept 202220.56 EDT

Cait Kelly

In Australia, prime minister Anthony Albanese has paid tribute to the Queen ahead of the country’s proclamation of the new King, saying he got “to see both sides” of her majesty when he met her at Buckingham Palace during the global finical crisis.

She made sure that she spoke to every person in the room ... and give a bit of herself and that was typical of her commitment to duty and devotion but she was good-humoured. There was a good spirit in the room.

When asked if her death means Australia should move towards a republic, Albanese he says now is not the time to talk about a change in Australia’s system of government.

Now is a time for us to pay tribute to the life of Queen Elizabeth, a life well lived, of dedication and loyalty, including to the Australian people and for us to honour and grieve at the loss, to also, today, we will be, of course, commemorating the proclamation of King Charles III as Australia’s head of state.

Prime minister Jacinda Ardern has paid tribute to the Queen’s “unwavering duty” at the country’s ceremony to recognise King Charles III as head of state.

Upon her death we enter a time of change – one filled with sadness for her passing, but also gratitude for the life she led, and the example she set. We are forever grateful for her close bond to our country, but it’s a bond and affection that spans across her entire family.

Ardern said she believed New Zealand’s close connection to the Royal family would continue under the new monarch.

King Charles has long had an affection for Aotearoa New Zealand and has consistently demonstrated his deep care for our nation. This relationship is deeply valued by our people. I have no doubt it will deepen.

New Zealand is now beginning its formal ceremony on parliament grounds to recognise the new King as its monarch. The proceedings, led by governer-general Cindy Kiro and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, will begin with the national anthem and a prayer in te reo Māori – the indigenous language. A livestream of the event is here: