CROWDS gathered to hear the proclamation that Charles III has acceded to the throne in Southampton today.
Hundreds of people descended upon the city centre to watch the historical ceremony on the steps of the Civic Centre.
Lord Mayor of Southampton, Cllr Jacqui Rayment read the proclamation to residents and visitors alike.
This comes one day after the King was officially proclaimed monarch during a ceremony at St James’s Palace on Saturday.
'Honour and a privilege'
Cllr Rayment described the event as “once in a lifetime.”
Speaking to the Daily Echo after the proclamation, she said: “Doing this is mixed emotions.
"I feel sadness because of why we’re here today to do the proclamation but it’s an honour and a privilege.
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“So, as Southampton’s first citizen, to be able to share that news in a historic way was quite amazing.
“Being experienced in public speaking, I was surprised at how nervous I was today.
“You can’t be Lord Mayor of Southampton if you don’t hold the monarchy in high regard.”
'Once in a lifetime'
The Lord Mayor was joined on the steps by prominent city figures, including the city’s town crier Alan Spencer, a Deputy Lieutenant of Hampshire, and leader of the council Satvir Kaur, to name a few.
After the proclamation, the national anthem was sung and town crier Alan Spencer led three cheers, saying “Hip hip”, to which the crowd replied with “Hooray”.
Cllr Rayment said: “For most of us this is once in a lifetime, and I pray King Charles has a long, happy and healthy reign.
“And for the majority of people, young and old, they don’t know any different to having the Queen. This is new for everybody.
“We have seen a steady number of people come forward to sign our books of condolence, so I am not surprised at the number of people who turned up for the proclamation today.
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“I think it’s because this is a moment in history that will never be repeated, and we will not have the Queen’s length of service again.
“We are in the process of arranging a remembrance service which will be held before the Queen’s funeral.”
'She's been there most of our lives'
Southampton residents Santosh Kumari, 67, and Gurnam Bhatti, 45, attended the proclamation.
Santosh said: “We came here for the book of condolence to pay our respects; we didn’t know this was happening.”
Gurnam added: “The Queen has been there most of our lives, so we’re here to pay our respects.”
Books of condolence have been opened across the city for people to share their messages, in light of the Queen’s passing.
They can be found at Shirley, Central and Bitterne libraries and in the Civic Centre.
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