Cover image: King Charles III applauded by the crowd on his return to Buckingham Palace in London, September 10, 2022. ADRIAN DENNIS / AFP
- Charles III, 73, has been officially proclaimed king, Saturday, after the death at 96, Thursday, of his mother, Elizabeth II, which opened a period of national mourning, and a new era for the British monarchy. He acceded to the throne in a difficult period, the United Kingdom facing the worst economic crisis in forty years.
- After being applauded on Friday in front of Buckingham Palace by thousands of people, Charles III promised in his first speech as sovereign to serve the British all his lifeas her mother, Elizabeth II, had done when she was 21e anniversary. With a sober and confident tone, dressed in a black suit, the monarch paid tribute to “life of service” from his mother, to his “love of tradition”his “adherence without fear to progress”but also to its “warmth and humor”. In a moving tribute, he thanked his ” Dear Mum “.
- A religious ceremony in memory of the Queen was heldFriday, at the end of the day at Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London in the presence of the new Prime Minister, Liz Truss, who read extracts from the Bible. The bells had previously rung in the churches of the land, notably in Windsor, where the Queen lived most of the time, and 96 cannon shots rang out at 1 p.m.drawn from Hyde Park, but also at the castles of Cardiff and Edinburgh, York, Portsmouth and Gibraltar.
- Queen Elizabeth II died Thursday at Balmoral. She was 96 years old. She had acceded to the throne in 1952, at the age of 25. Revered by the British people, head of the armies of the United Kingdom, supreme governor of the Anglican Church, interlocutor of fifteen British prime ministers, of all the heads of state of the Ve French Republic and thirteen American presidents, the Queen has gone through the ages.
- The “unicorn” operation is activated. The body of Elizabeth II will first be transported to Edinburgh. The coffin will be transported by road to Holyrood Palace, according to the correspondent of the World Cecile Ducourtieux. There will be a procession from Holyrood to St. Giles Cathedral, located in old Edinburgh. After a ceremony reserved for the royal family, Saint-Gilles Cathedral will be open to the public for twenty-four hours. Then the coffin will go to London, where the funeral will take place on a date that is not yet known.
- Prince William, now Prince of Wales, is the new heir apparent, followed by her three children, in order of birth: George (born in 2013), Charlotte (born in 2015) and Louis (born in 2018). Then come Prince Harry and his two children, Archie and Lilibet.
Find our live from yesterday here.
Read all our articles, analyzes and reports on the death of Elizabeth II
Reportage. From London to Balmoral, “it was the least we could do to pay him a last tribute”
Narrative. The first day of Charles III: “It’s the moment I dreaded, but we must continue”
Chronic. Thomas Piketty: “The British monarchy has been, since 1911, only a cosmetic monarchy”
Decryptions. What is the Commonwealth, of which King Charles III takes the lead?
Video. Charles III delivers his first speech as king
Reportage. Charles III, the photo album of his first day of reign
To analyse. For the Prince of Wales, who became Charles III, the challenge of succeeding without disappointing
Maintenance. Historian Robert Lacey: ‘Queen Elizabeth II has accepted the tyranny of the institution’
Decryptions. Elizabeth II: ten days of millimeter protocol after the death of the queen
Podcast. Elizabeth II: the power of a powerless queen