EDINBURGH, Scotland —- Queen Elizabeth II’s flag-draped coffin has arrived at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the British monarchy’s residence in the Scottish capital city of Edinburgh.
The arrival followed a slow, somber and regal procession through the Scottish countryside on Sunday. Mourners had packed city streets and lined rural roads to take part in a historic goodbye to the monarch who reigned for 70 years.
The hearse drove past piles of bouquets and other tributes as it led a seven-car cortege from Balmoral, where the queen died Thursday at age 96, for a six-hour trip through Scottish towns to the palace in Edinburgh. The late queen’s coffin was draped in the Royal Standard for Scotland and topped with a wreath made of flowers from the estate, including sweet peas, one of the queen’s favorites.
Members of the Royal Regiment of Scotland carried the coffin past the queen’s only daughter, Princess Anne, and into the throne room. It will remain there until Monday afternoon so residence staff can pay their last respects.
King Charles III and his Queen Consort Camilla will travel to Edinburgh on Monday to take the coffin to St. Giles Cathedral on the city’s Royal Mile. The coffin will remain there for 24 hours before being flown to London on Tuesday.
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KEY DEVELOPMENTS:
— Queen Elizabeth II loved corgis breed from childhood
— Former British colonies conflicted over Queen Elizabeth II
— Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin begins journey through Scotland
— What’s next for the UK as Queen Elizabeth II laid to rest
— King Charles III is officially proclaimed monarch in London
— What will happen to all the currencies that feature the queen?
— Explainer: The formal rules around Charles’ accession
— Mourners in the street: Sincere grief flows out across Britain
— Will Charles be loved by his subjects, like his mother was?
— Find more AP coverage here: https://apnews.com/hub/queen-elizabeth-ii
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OTHER DEVELOPMENTS:
A young Bosnian girl is remembering Queen Elizabeth II for her love of dogs and her kindness.
Asya Isovic, 12, says she will never forget the day she found a letter waiting for her at home in Sarajevo that was sent on the queen’s behalf.
Isovic had made a card decorated with a drawing of a Queen’s Guard with three corgi dogs and mailed it to the Queen along with “some poems and a couple of more things.”
She did not expect a reply, but one signed by the queen’s lady-in-waiting had arrived. The letter said the Queen “was touched by your thoughtfulness and really appreciates the time and care taken to create your card and gifts.”
Isovic said she hoped the royal family will find a way to cope with the loss. She also hoped that King Charles III “will take care of the (late Queen’s) corgis.”
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LONDON — King Charles III’s son William, the new Prince of Wales, has told the First Minister of Wales, Mark Drakeford, he will serve the country “with humility and great respect.”
William was given the title when his father, the previous Prince of Wales, ascended to the throne following the death Thursday of Queen Elizabeth II.
William told Drakeford that he and his wife Catherine have a “deep affection for Wales, having made their first family home in Anglesey, including during the earliest months of Prince George’s life.”
He said the couple would travel to Wales “very soon” and want “to do their part to support the aspirations of the Welsh people and to shine a spotlight on both the challenges and opportunities in front of them.”
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BEIJING — Chinese President Xi Jinping has sent a message of congratulation to Britain’s King Charles III on his accession to the throne, the official Xinhua News Agency reported Sunday.
“I am willing to work with King Charles III to enhance mutual understanding and friendship … and strengthen communication on global issues, so as to benefit the two countries,” Xinhua quoted Xi as saying.
The Chinese president also commemorated the 50th anniversary of formal diplomatic relations. The message comes amid strained relations over trade, human rights and China’s crackdown on the democratic opposition in the former British colony of Hong Kong.
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King Charles III has been formally proclaimed the monarch in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The moves Sunday in the rest of the United Kingdom came a day after the same proclamation was made in London at a pomp-filled accession ceremony steeped in ancient tradition and political symbolism.
In Belfast, bells chimed and a bugler played before the proclamation was read. It was followed by a 21-gun salute and a military band playing the anthem, “God Save the King.” In Wales, a regimental mascot goat accompanied the 3rd Battalion of the Royal Welsh regiment at the ceremony at Cardiff Castle.
Earlier, proclamations were held in other parts of the Commonwealth — the group of former British Empire colonies — including Australia and New Zealand.
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ABERDEEN, Scotland — Mourners are quietly paying tribute as a hearse carrying Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin passes through the Scottish countryside on a final journey back to London.
Crowds are lining the streets Sunday and some have tossed flowers as the hearse passes through villages and towns a six-hour road journey to Edinburgh. The queen died Thursday at her beloved summer estate Balmoral Castle.
The late queen’s coffin was draped in the Royal Standard for Scotland and topped with a wreath made of flowers from Balmoral, including sweet peas, one of the queen’s favorites.
The First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, tweeted that “as she makes her journey to Edinburgh, Scotland will pay tribute to an extraordinary woman.”
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LONDON — King Charles III will attend a reception Sunday with commissioners from Commonwealth nations.
The commissions maintain and develop relationships with the group of countries that grapple with affection for the queen and lingering bitterness over their own colonial legacies.
Charles became king after his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died Thursday at her summer retreat in Scotland. Her coffin has left her beloved Balmoral Castle on Sunday for a six-hour road journey to Edinburgh, with people lining the streets in some places to pay their respects.
The king will meet with the secretary-general of the Commonwealth at Buckingham Palace before a reception with the foreign secretary and commissioners from countries like Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Belize, Canada and New Zealand.
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BALMORAL CASTLE, Scotland — A hearse carrying the late Queen Elizabeth II’s oak coffin has left her beloved Balmoral Castle.
The coffin of the late monarch is beginning a six-hour road journey to Edinburgh on Sunday. She died Thursday at Balmoral after a 70-year reign and is starting her last journey back to London for a state funeral Sept. 19.
Crowds are lining parts of the route as the nation mourns its longest-reigning monarch. Early Sunday, flowers and other tributes — a small Paddington Bear toy, a hand-drawn picture of the queen — were piled up outside the gates of Balmoral.
Also Sunday, King Charles III will be formally proclaimed king in the other nations of the United Kingdom — Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland — after a similar ceremony in Britain a day earlier.
