King Charles III was officially announced as Britain's monarch Saturday, in a ceremony steeped in ancient tradition and political symbolism — and, for the first time, broadcast live.Charles automatically became king when his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died on Thursday, but the accession ceremony is a key constitutional and ceremonial step in introducing the new monarch to the country.The ceremony at St. James's Palace, a royal residence in London, is attended by the Accession Council, made up of senior politicians and officials who advise the monarch. They met without Charles, officially confirming his title, King Charles III. The king will then join them to make a series of oaths and declarations.It's the first time the ceremony has been held since 1952, when Queen Elizabeth II took the throne.Charles is accompanied at the ceremony by his wife Camilla, the Queen Consort, and his eldest son Prince William. William is now heir to the throne and known by the title Charles long held, Prince of Wales.Video above: Timeline of King Charles III's lifeAfter the ceremony, an official will read the proclamation aloud from a balcony at St. James's Palace. It will also be read out in the medieval City of London and at other locations across the U.K.Two days after the 96-year-old queen died at Balmoral Castle in Scotland following an unprecedented 70 years on the throne, people still came in their thousands to pay their respects outside Buckingham Palace in London. The scene was repeated at other royal residences across the U.K. and at British embassies around the world.The monarch set the tone for his reign on Friday, vowing in a televised address to carry on the queen's "lifelong service," with his own modernizing stamp.Charles looked to both the past — noting his mother's unwavering "dedication and devotion as sovereign" — and the future, seeking to strike a reassuring note of constancy while signaling that his will be a 21st-century monarchy.He reflected on how the country had changed dramatically during the queen's reign into a society "of many cultures and many faiths," and pledged to serve people in Britain and the 14 other countries where he is king "whatever may be your background or beliefs."He also tried to overcome a reputation for aloofness in his first hours as monarch, spending time shaking hands with some of the thousands who came to leave flowers and pay tribute to the queen at the gates of Buckingham Palace. He was greeted with shouts of "Well done, Charlie!" and "God save the king!" One woman gave him a kiss on the cheek.Britain is holding a period of mourning for the queen, with days of carefully choreographed ceremonies marking the death of the only monarch most people have ever known.In the next few days the queen's body will be brought from Balmoral, first to Edinburgh and then to London, where she will lie in state before a funeral at Westminster Abbey, expected around Sept. 19.In his speech, Charles struck a personal note, speaking of his sorrow at the loss of "my darling Mama.""Thank you for your love and devotion to our family and to the family of nations you have served so diligently all these years," he said, ending with a quote from Shakespeare's "Hamlet" — "May flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.'"

Cheering crowds greeted King Charles III on Tuesday in Northern Ireland on his tour of the four parts of the United Kingdom, where the visit drew a rare moment of unity from politicians in a region with a contested British and Irish identity that is deeply divided over the monarchy.Hundreds of people lined the street leading to Hillsborough Castle near Belfast, the royal family's official residence in Northern Ireland, in the latest outpouring of affection following Queen Elizabeth II's death on Sept. 8. The area in front of the gates to the castle was carpeted with hundreds of floral tributes.Charles and his wife Camilla, the Queen Consort, got out of their car to meet villagers — waving to the crowd and sometimes using both hands to reach out to people, including schoolchildren in bright blue uniforms. Charles even petted a corgi — famously his late mother's favorite breed of dog — held up by one person, and some chanted "God save the king!""Today means so much to me and my family, just to be present in my home village with my children to witness the arrival of the new king is a truly historic moment for us all," said Hillsborough resident Robin Campbell as he waited for Charles.But he added: "It is also a day tinged with great sadness as we witness a loving son coming to our village while we are all in mourning for the loss of a truly magnificent queen and his loving mother."While there was a warm welcome in Hillsborough, the British monarchy draws mixed emotions in Northern Ireland, where there are two main communities: mostly Protestant unionists who consider themselves British and largely Roman Catholic nationalists who see themselves as Irish.Video above: Queen Elizabeth's hearse arrives in EdinburghThat split fueled three decades of violence known as "the Troubles" involving paramilitary groups on both sides and U.K. security forces, in which 3,600 people died. The royal family was touched personally by the violence: Lord Louis Mountbatten, a cousin of the queen and a much-loved mentor to Charles, was killed by an Irish Republican Army bomb in 1979.A deep sectarian divide remains, a quarter century after Northern Ireland's 1998 peace agreement.For some Irish nationalists, the British monarch represents an oppressive foreign power. But others acknowledge the queen's role in forging peace. On a visit to Northern Ireland in 2012, she shook hands with Sinn Fein deputy leader Martin McGuinness, a former IRA commander – a once-unthinkable moment of reconciliation.Alex Maskey, a Sinn Fein politician who is speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly, said the queen had "demonstrated how individual acts of positive leadership can help break down barriers and encourage reconciliation." In a sign of how far Northern Ireland has come on the road to peace, representatives of Sinn Fein are attending commemorative events for the queen and meeting the king on Tuesday.Maskey expressed condolences to the king at an event in Hillsborough Castle attended by leaders from all the main political parties in Northern Ireland.Charles responded that his mother "felt deeply, I know, the significance of the role she herself played in bringing together those whom history had separated, and in extending a hand to make possible the healing of long-held hurts."He said he would draw on his mother's "shining example" and "seek the welfare of all the inhabitants of Northern Ireland." Still, not everyone was welcoming the new king.On the Falls Road in Belfast, a nationalist stronghold, several walls are decorated with murals of Bobby Sands, an IRA member who died while on a hunger strike in prison in 1981, and others killed in the Troubles."No, he's not our king. Bobby Sands was our king here," said 52-year-old Bobby Jones. "Queen never done nothing for us. Never did. None of the royals do."Later, Charles and Northern Ireland politicians are to attend a "service of reflection" for the queen at St. Anne's Cathedral in Belfast.The president and prime minister of the neighboring Republic of Ireland also are due to attend, despite tense relations between Dublin and London over Brexit. Since Britain left the European Union in 2020, the U.K. and the EU have been wrangling over trade rules for Northern Ireland, the only part of the U.K. that shares a border with a member of the bloc.On Monday night, Charles and siblings Anne, Andrew and Edward briefly stood vigil around their mother's flag-draped coffin in St. Giles Cathedral as members of the public filed past.Video above: King Charles says he feels the 'weight of history'The following morning, a man wearing a suit adorned with medals stood silently, bowed his head and moved on. A woman dabbed away tears with a handkerchief. Another woman with two young children in school uniforms walked slowly past the coffin.In the line of mourners outside the cathedral in the historic heart of Edinburgh, Sheila McLeay called the queen "a wonderful ambassador for our country.""She was such an example for every single one of us. She was dignified. She was just, she was beautiful inside and out. And I have known her all of my life. And I miss her very much," she added.The queen's coffin was scheduled to leave Scotland later Tuesday to be flown back to London and driven to her official London home, Buckingham Palace. On Wednesday, it will be taken through central London to Parliament, where the queen will lie in state until her funeral in Westminster Abbey on Monday. Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to line up to pay their last respects at the coffin.The Royal Air Force C-17 Globemaster that will carry the coffin has been used to evacuate people from Afghanistan and to take humanitarian aid and weapons to Ukraine following Russia's invasion, U.K. Air Chief Marshal Sir Mike Wigston said.Early Tuesday, scores of workers cleaned litter and weeds from the road from the air force base where the plane carrying the coffin will land.

Cheering crowds greeted King Charles III on Tuesday in Northern Ireland on his tour of the four parts of the United Kingdom, where the visit drew a rare moment of unity from politicians in a region with a contested British and Irish identity that is deeply divided over the monarchy.

Hundreds of people lined the street leading to Hillsborough Castle near Belfast, the royal family's official residence in Northern Ireland, in the latest outpouring of affection following Queen Elizabeth II's death on Sept. 8. The area in front of the gates to the castle was carpeted with hundreds of floral tributes.

Charles and his wife Camilla, the Queen Consort, got out of their car to meet villagers — waving to the crowd and sometimes using both hands to reach out to people, including schoolchildren in bright blue uniforms.

Charles even petted a corgi — famously his late mother's favorite breed of dog — held up by one person, and some chanted "God save the king!"

"Today means so much to me and my family, just to be present in my home village with my children to witness the arrival of the new king is a truly historic moment for us all," said Hillsborough resident Robin Campbell as he waited for Charles.

But he added: "It is also a day tinged with great sadness as we witness a loving son coming to our village while we are all in mourning for the loss of a truly magnificent queen and his loving mother."

While there was a warm welcome in Hillsborough, the British monarchy draws mixed emotions in Northern Ireland, where there are two main communities: mostly Protestant unionists who consider themselves British and largely Roman Catholic nationalists who see themselves as Irish.

Video above: Queen Elizabeth's hearse arrives in Edinburgh

That split fueled three decades of violence known as "the Troubles" involving paramilitary groups on both sides and U.K. security forces, in which 3,600 people died. The royal family was touched personally by the violence: Lord Louis Mountbatten, a cousin of the queen and a much-loved mentor to Charles, was killed by an Irish Republican Army bomb in 1979.

A deep sectarian divide remains, a quarter century after Northern Ireland's 1998 peace agreement.

For some Irish nationalists, the British monarch represents an oppressive foreign power. But others acknowledge the queen's role in forging peace. On a visit to Northern Ireland in 2012, she shook hands with Sinn Fein deputy leader Martin McGuinness, a former IRA commander – a once-unthinkable moment of reconciliation.

Alex Maskey, a Sinn Fein politician who is speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly, said the queen had "demonstrated how individual acts of positive leadership can help break down barriers and encourage reconciliation."

In a sign of how far Northern Ireland has come on the road to peace, representatives of Sinn Fein are attending commemorative events for the queen and meeting the king on Tuesday.

Maskey expressed condolences to the king at an event in Hillsborough Castle attended by leaders from all the main political parties in Northern Ireland.

Charles responded that his mother "felt deeply, I know, the significance of the role she herself played in bringing together those whom history had separated, and in extending a hand to make possible the healing of long-held hurts."

He said he would draw on his mother's "shining example" and "seek the welfare of all the inhabitants of Northern Ireland."

Still, not everyone was welcoming the new king.

On the Falls Road in Belfast, a nationalist stronghold, several walls are decorated with murals of Bobby Sands, an IRA member who died while on a hunger strike in prison in 1981, and others killed in the Troubles.

"No, he's not our king. Bobby Sands was our king here," said 52-year-old Bobby Jones. "Queen never done nothing for us. Never did. None of the royals do."

Later, Charles and Northern Ireland politicians are to attend a "service of reflection" for the queen at St. Anne's Cathedral in Belfast.

The president and prime minister of the neighboring Republic of Ireland also are due to attend, despite tense relations between Dublin and London over Brexit. Since Britain left the European Union in 2020, the U.K. and the EU have been wrangling over trade rules for Northern Ireland, the only part of the U.K. that shares a border with a member of the bloc.

On Monday night, Charles and siblings Anne, Andrew and Edward briefly stood vigil around their mother's flag-draped coffin in St. Giles Cathedral as members of the public filed past.

Video above: King Charles says he feels the 'weight of history'

The following morning, a man wearing a suit adorned with medals stood silently, bowed his head and moved on. A woman dabbed away tears with a handkerchief. Another woman with two young children in school uniforms walked slowly past the coffin.

In the line of mourners outside the cathedral in the historic heart of Edinburgh, Sheila McLeay called the queen "a wonderful ambassador for our country."

"She was such an example for every single one of us. She was dignified. She was just, she was beautiful inside and out. And I have known her all of my life. And I miss her very much," she added.

The queen's coffin was scheduled to leave Scotland later Tuesday to be flown back to London and driven to her official London home, Buckingham Palace. On Wednesday, it will be taken through central London to Parliament, where the queen will lie in state until her funeral in Westminster Abbey on Monday. Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to line up to pay their last respects at the coffin.

The Royal Air Force C-17 Globemaster that will carry the coffin has been used to evacuate people from Afghanistan and to take humanitarian aid and weapons to Ukraine following Russia's invasion, U.K. Air Chief Marshal Sir Mike Wigston said.

Early Tuesday, scores of workers cleaned litter and weeds from the road from the air force base where the plane carrying the coffin will land.