Charles III Proclaimed King in First-Ever Televised Accession Ceremony (VIDEO)

King Charles III instantly became king the moment his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died on Thursday, September 8 under the old common law rule that ensures Britain is never without a monarch and “the King never dies.” But he wasn’t officially proclaimed the King of the United Kingdom and fourteen Commonwealth realms until the Accession Council met in London on the morning of September 10 for this formality. And for the first time in history, the accession ceremony was televised.

The accession ceremony is a symbolic event dating back to 1603. The King’s official coronation will come at a later date. U.K. networks including BBC, ITV, and Sky broadcast the ceremony live, as did U.S. networks. NBC‘s Savannah Guthrie hosted a special morning edition of Today to cover the event.

The accession ceremony is made up of two sections, the first consisting only of the Accession Council (mainly made up of Privy Council members), who witnessed the proclamation in the Picture Gallery in St James Palace. The Accession Council includes about 200 members, including the last five Prime Ministers Boris Johnson, Theresa May, David Cameron, Gordon Brown, and Tony Blair.

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Also invited onto the platform were the new Prince of Wales, Prince William, Camilla the Queen Consort, and current Prime Minister Liz Truss. Current and former leaders of the opposition Keir Starmer and Ed Miliband and the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan were also in attendance.

The onlookers watched while a document was signed witnessing the proclamation, which took about 10 minutes. The second part of the proclamation saw the Lord Mayor of London sent out to the City of London to make a public declaration of the King’s confirmation, which was then followed by ceremonial gunfire.

This was followed by King Charles giving a heartfelt speech paying tribute to his mother and pledging his service to the country in the Throne Room. Wearing a somber black mourning suit, the newly declared King spoke with feelings of profound sorrow.

“I know how deeply you and the entire nation, and I think I may say the whole world, sympathize with me into the irreparable loss we have all suffered,” he said.

King Charles also took an oath relating to “the safety and security of the Church of Scotland” and signed the printed version of the statement. Lastly, he confirmed that the day of the Queen’s funeral would be declared a public holiday.

The late Queen’s funeral will be held on Monday, September 19.