By George Bowden BBC News

“Queen Elizabeth’s was a life well lived,” King Charles III said, as he renewed his “darling Mama’s” promise of lifelong service.

In an emotional first address to the nation, he praised her warmth, humour and ability to see the best in people.

Prince William and Catherine will become Prince and Princess of Wales, he said, as he expressed his love for his son Prince Harry and wife Meghan.

The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral in Scotland on Thursday aged 96.

The speech was broadcast as a service to remember the late Queen, attended by senior politicians and 2,000 members of the public, got under way at St Paul’s Cathedral.

It saw the first official rendition of the national anthem – God Save the King – since Charles became monarch.

King Charles III gave the following address to the nation and Commonwealth:

“I speak to you today with feelings of profound sorrow. Throughout her life, Her Majesty the Queen – my beloved Mother – was an inspiration and example to me and to all my family, and we owe her the most heartfelt debt any family can owe to their mother; for her love, affection, guidance, understanding and example. 

“Queen Elizabeth’s was a life well lived; a promise with destiny kept and she is mourned most deeply in her passing. 

“That promise of lifelong service I renew to you all today.

“Alongside the personal grief that all my family are feeling, we also share with so many of you in the United Kingdom, in all the countries where the Queen was head of state, in the Commonwealth and across the world, a deep sense of gratitude for the more than 70 years in which my mother, as Queen, served the people of so many nations.

“In 1947, on her 21st birthday, she pledged in a broadcast from Cape Town to the Commonwealth to devote her life, whether it be short or long, to the service of her peoples. 

“That was more than a promise: it was a profound personal commitment which defined her whole life. 

“She made sacrifices for duty. Her dedication and devotion as sovereign never wavered, through times of change and progress, through times of joy and celebration, and through times of sadness and loss.

“In her life of service we saw that abiding love of tradition, together with that fearless embrace of progress, which make us great as nations. 

“The affection, admiration and respect she inspired became the hallmark of her reign. And, as every member of my family can testify, she combined these qualities with warmth, humour and an unerring ability always to see the best in people.

“I pay tribute to my mother’s memory and I honour her life of service. I know that her death brings great sadness to so many of you and I share that sense of loss, beyond measure, with you all.

“When the Queen came to the throne, Britain and the world were still coping with the privations and aftermath of the Second World War, and still living by the conventions of earlier times. 

“In the course of the last 70 years we have seen our society become one of many cultures and many faiths. 

“The institutions of the state have changed in turn. But, through all changes and challenges, our nation and the wider family of realms – of whose talents, traditions and achievements I am so inexpressibly proud – have prospered and flourished. Our values have remained, and must remain, constant.

“The role and the duties of monarchy also remain, as does the sovereign’s particular relationship and responsibility towards the Church of England – the Church in which my own faith is so deeply rooted.

“In that faith, and the values it inspires, I have been brought up to cherish a sense of duty to others, and to hold in the greatest respect the precious traditions, freedoms and responsibilities of our unique history and our system of parliamentary government.

“As the Queen herself did with such unswerving devotion, I too now solemnly pledge myself, throughout the remaining time God grants me, to uphold the constitutional principles at the heart of our nation. 

“And wherever you may live in the United Kingdom, or in the realms and territories across the world, and whatever may be your background or beliefs, I shall endeavour to serve you with loyalty, respect and love, as I have throughout my life.

“My life will of course change as I take up my new responsibilities. It will no longer be possible for me to give so much of my time and energies to the charities and issues for which I care so deeply. But I know this important work will go on in the trusted hands of others.

“This is also a time of change for my family. I count on the loving help of my darling wife, Camilla. In recognition of her own loyal public service since our marriage seventeen years ago, she becomes my Queen Consort. I know she will bring to the demands of her new role the steadfast devotion to duty on which I have come to rely so much.

“As my heir, William now assumes the Scottish titles which have meant so much to me. He succeeds me as Duke of Cornwall and takes on the responsibilities for the Duchy of Cornwall which I have undertaken for more than five decades. 

“Today, I am proud to create him Prince of Wales, Tywysog Cymru, the country whose title I have been so greatly privileged to bear during so much of my life and duty. 

“With Catherine beside him, our new Prince and Princess of Wales will, I know, continue to inspire and lead our national conversations, helping to bring the marginal to the centre ground where vital help can be given.

“I want also to express my love for Harry and Meghan as they continue to build their lives overseas.

“In a little over a week’s time we will come together as a nation, as a Commonwealth and indeed a global community, to lay my beloved mother to rest. In our sorrow, let us remember and draw strength from the light of her example. On behalf of all my family, I can only offer the most sincere and heartfelt thanks for your condolences and support. They mean more to me than I can ever possibly express.

“And to my darling Mama, as you begin your last great journey to join my dear late Papa, I want simply to say this: thank you. Thank you for your love and devotion to our family and to the family of nations you have served so diligently all these years. 

“May ‘flights of Angels sing thee to thy rest’.”

In his televised address, the King, 73, said: “Her dedication and devotion as Sovereign never waivered, through times of change and progress, through times of joy and celebration, and through times of sadness and loss.”

He announced he had made his son William the Prince of Wales, with his wife Catherine the Princess of Wales – the title last used by William’s mother Diana.

And he expressed his “love for Harry and Meghan as they continue to build their lives overseas”.

Speaking about his wife of 17 years, Camilla, 75, who becomes the Queen Consort, he said: “I know she will bring to the demands of her new role the steadfast devotion to duty on which I have come to rely so much.”

He acknowledged his life had now changed, saying: “It will no longer be possible for me to give so much of my time and energies to the charities and issues for which I care so deeply. 

“But I know this important work will go on in the trusted hands of others.”

Heir to the throne Prince William will now take on the King’s former Scottish titles and responsibility for the Duchy of Cornwall.

“With Catherine beside him, our new Prince and Princess of Wales will, I know, continue to inspire and lead our national conversations, helping to bring the marginal to the centre ground where vital help can be given,” the King said.

Looking ahead to the Queen’s funeral, the King expressed his hope that despite the sorrow felt around the nation and Commonwealth people would “remember and draw strength from the light of her example”.

He concluded: “And to my darling Mama, as you begin your last great journey to join my dear late Papa, I want simply to say this: thank you.

“Thank you for your love and devotion to our family and to the family of nations you have served so diligently all these years.

“May ‘flights of Angels sing thee to thy rest’.” 

END of Speech

In his televised address, the King, 73, said: “Her dedication and devotion as Sovereign never waivered, through times of change and progress, through times of joy and celebration, and through times of sadness and loss.”

He announced he had made his son William the Prince of Wales, with his wife Catherine the Princess of Wales – the title last used by William’s mother Diana.

And he expressed his “love for Harry and Meghan as they continue to build their lives overseas”.

Speaking about his wife of 17 years, Camilla, 75, who becomes the Queen Consort, he said: “I know she will bring to the demands of her new role the steadfast devotion to duty on which I have come to rely so much.”

He acknowledged his life had now changed, saying: “It will no longer be possible for me to give so much of my time and energies to the charities and issues for which I care so deeply. 

“But I know this important work will go on in the trusted hands of others.”

Heir to the throne Prince William will now take on the King’s former Scottish titles and responsibility for the Duchy of Cornwall.

“With Catherine beside him, our new Prince and Princess of Wales will, I know, continue to inspire and lead our national conversations, helping to bring the marginal to the centre ground where vital help can be given,” the King said.

Looking ahead to the Queen’s funeral, the King expressed his hope that despite the sorrow felt around the nation and Commonwealth people would “remember and draw strength from the light of her example”.

He concluded: “And to my darling Mama, as you begin your last great journey to join my dear late Papa, I want simply to say this: thank you.

“Thank you for your love and devotion to our family and to the family of nations you have served so diligently all these years.

“May ‘flights of Angels sing thee to thy rest’.”

Tribute to the two women at centre of Charles’ life

This was an intensely personal speech from King Charles, full of undisguised emotion about his family at a time of mourning.

It included a headline announcement that Prince William and Kate would become Prince and Princess of Wales, handing on to the next generation.

But perhaps more movingly he paid tribute to two women at the centre of his life – his mother the Queen and his “darling wife’ Camilla.

He spoke of his “profound sorrow” at the loss his mother, her “life well lived” and her “sacrifices for duty”, sticking tenaciously to her sense of service through decades of huge social change.

The new King also praised the “steadfast devotion” of the new Queen, his wife Camilla, making clear the important and non-negotiable role she would play in his life.

There was also an expression of love for “Harry and Meghan as they continue to build their lives overseas”.

Another clear message being sent was that Charles was here for the long haul, the throne would be a lifelong commitment for him, for all “the remaining time God grants me”.

But it was an important, tone-setting speech that was absent of any pomposity, promising to serve rather than to rule. It also touched on two of his passions, Shakespeare and religion.

Although nothing is accidental in the royal world and the speech from Buckingham Palace had its own deliberate symbolism.

He spoke in a room used by his mother for Christmas messages and in front of a posy of sweet peas and rosemary meant to represent remembrance.

And at the base of the vase there were three corgis.

The palace has released further details of what will happen over the coming days.

The date of the Queen’s funeral is yet to be revealed, but it is expected to be in the next two weeks.

Before that, her coffin will lie at rest in Edinburgh for 24 hours and will then move to London to lie in state.

While it is lying in state in Westminster Hall, members of the public will be allowed to file past and pay their respects.

There will be no physical book of condolences for members of the public to sign, but the palace has opened an online one.

King Charles earlier declared a period of mourning across the Royal Family and Household to be observed until seven days after his mother is laid to rest at Windsor.

• Gun salutes fired and church bells tolled to pay tribute to the Queen
• King Charles III and the Queen Consort returned to London
• He held an audience with Prime Minister Liz Truss
• A public, ticketed ceremony of remembrance took place at St Paul’s

As part of the process of proclaiming Charles as King, a meeting of the Accession Council on Saturday will be attended by the King’s son, Prince William, the new Prince of Wales.

It will also be attended by invited Privy Councillors and current serving government ministers – but that could also include former ministers, prime ministers, and senior clergy.

After the meeting, the Principal Proclamation, announcing Charles as sovereign, will be read at 11:00 BST from the balcony overlooking Friary Court at St James’s Palace, central London.

For more on this story go to: BBC