Headline

Full Speech: Charles’ First Address As King

Published

2 years ago

September 9, 2022

Britain’s new monarch, King Charles III, addressed a mourning nation and the Commonwealth for the first time Friday, a day after the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.

Here is his statement, pre-recorded in the Blue Drawing Room in Buckingham Palace during the afternoon and broadcast at 6:00 pm on Friday.

Read full speech below:

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 people.

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 17 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’.

AFP

Related Topics:Prince Charles Queen Elizabeth

Up Next

Nigerian Flags To Fly Half-mast For Queen Elizabeth

Don't Miss

Goodluck Jonathan, Peter Obi, Atiku React To Death Of Queen Elizabeth II

Comments

Headline

Find The Man Who Stole $30000 From Me, Get $2000 Reward – Nigerian Man Cries Out

Published

18 mins ago

May 4, 2024

Editor

Transaction details

A Nigerian man has offered a $2000 reward to anyone with information leading to the arrest of a man who allegedly defrauded him and his friends of over N42 million (approximately $30,000 USD).

Addressing the public on X.com, he said, “Hi everyone, this person defrauded my friends and I.

“We will be offering $2,000 (USD) to anyone who has info on him or knows of his whereabouts.”

According to the victim, the suspect, who moved into the victim’s apartment, spun a web of lies, claiming to need financial assistance for various reasons, including a dying nephew and financial problems with the Federal Inland Revenue Services

He narrated, “Roughly three months ago, The dude in the video came to my apartment in Lagos sharing that he had some financial problems with the FIRS(Federal Inland Revenue Services).

“He mentioned how he got locked out of his funds of over N107,000,000 (USD 71,000+).

“We (my friends and I), were sympathetic to his cause and decided to lend a helping hand.”

The victim revealed that he first encountered the suspect on a gaming platform, Fortnite, in 2023.

They bonded over shared interests and his alleged profession as a skilled 3D and Motion Artist.

“I was happy to connect with him because he presented himself as a well-skilled 3D & Motion Artist.

“He also shared his Upwork profile with me, which was very convincing,” he added.

Detailing the events that unfolded, he said the suspect moved into their apartment in early February after a period of lodging in hotels and other residences.

He added that he even financed a computer rental for the suspect, who claimed it was essential for his work.

He wrote “Here is a detailed breakdown of the series of events that played out while he lived with us (myself and my flatmates):

“He was shuffling between hotels and apartments in January before he finally moved in with us early February

“He mentioned he needed a computer to continue working as he didn’t have any at the time, so, I offered to help with the rental.

“I sent him the money to purchase the computer on rental about three times and he never for once, received any computer.

“He kept on spinning lies around how there was either a delay or how the money miraculously went into thin air without achieving its purpose. At the time, I believed all these.

“We also had to raise about N1,700,000 to help assist with the admission of his dying nephew into the hospital because, according to him, the child had suffered internal bleeding after falling off a trampoline.

“He used this and other tactics to coerce us into giving him more cash.”

The victim revealed that in March, the suspect purportedly convinced him and his friend to accompany him to Abuja to address his FIRS-related issues.

He shared screenshots of transactions made to the suspect’s account, urging the public to scrutinise the details for evidence.

Headline

PHOTOS: Moment 23-year-old Miss Ecuador Beauty Queen Is Gunned Down In Hail Of Bullets

Published

58 mins ago

May 4, 2024

Editor

Shocking CCTV footage shows two gunmen bursting into an eatery before killing the former Miss Ecuador contestant.

The former beauty queen, seen in the footage wearing a blue top, was talking to a man when the gunman, circled, walked in

Landy Párraga Goyburo can be seen standing next to a man while chatting with him inside the restaurant.

She can be seen glancing towards the door as her assailant sneaks into the place without her noticing.

As the first gunman runs towards them, Párraga drops to the floor while the man next to her ducks for cover.

The masked attacker quickly opens fire, shooting towards both Párraga and the man.

He then stands over her as she lies helpless on the floor and appears to shoot her repeatedly at point blank range.

Both attackers then dash out of the door and flee the scene.

Images later showed the former beauty queen lying motionless on the floor in a pool of blood.

Cops are now investigating the murder while trying to identify the assailants.

Párraga was a former Miss Ecuador contestant, having represented Los Ríos Province in 2022.

She had more than a million followers across her social media accounts.

In December 2023, her name was mentioned in a chat made public by the Attorney General’s Office as part of a major organised crime case it is investigating.

One of the 52 people being prosecuted in the case is Helive Angulo.

In the chat, Angulo told the drug trafficker Leandro Norero, whose assets he managed, that the police had asked him about Párraga.

Norero cryptically wrote: “If my wife comes across anything about her, I’m screwed.

“My friend, her name cannot come out anywhere. Otherwise, my world will come crashing down.”

Norero was killed in prison in 2022, six months after his imprisonment.

Money transfers made to Párraga’s bank account are under investigation by the Attorney General’s Office.

The office never prosecuted Párraga and she had never publicly commented on the case.

SOURCE: THE US SUN

Headline

Teenager Jailed For Life For Murder Of 16-year-old Boy At House Party

Published

17 hours ago

May 4, 2024

Editor

A teenager who stabbed Mikey Roynon, 16, to death with a “zombie knife” has been jailed for life.

Shane Cunningham, 16, fatally stabbed Mikey Roynon in the neck with a large hunting-style knife during a 16th birthday house party in Bath, Somerset in June 2023.

Mr Justice Saini sentenced him to life in jail with a minimum sentence of 16 years before he could be released for parole after he was convicted of murder.

Teenager jailed for life for murder of boy, 16, at house party
Shane Cunningham

His co-accused – Cartel Bushnell and Leo Knight, both 16 – were convicted of manslaughter after being acquitted of the more serious charge.

A judge sentenced Bushnell to nine years of youth detention, while Knight was given nine-and-a-half years’ youth detention.

The judge ruled that all three could be identified despite their age after an application by the PA news agency.

Cunningham had claimed he was acting in self-defence, claiming during the trial that Mikey had swung a knife towards friends in the garden of the property. But the jury saw through his story following a trial at Bristol crown court.

Mikey collapsed on the driveway with heavy bleeding from a single knife wound to his neck.

Police, paramedics and doctors soon arrived at the scene in Weston, a north-west suburb of Bath, but Mikey died.

The defendants ran off and threw away their weapons, two of which were recovered by police.

Detective Inspector Mark Newbury said: “That three boys armed themselves with knives to go to a teenage girl’s 16th birthday party is utterly unconscionable.

“Mikey went to that party to socialise and to have a good time. Instead, he was attacked with a horrifying weapon, suffered a catastrophic injury and tragically lost his life.

“Mikey was a much loved teenage boy and his family have been left totally devastated.

“They have shown incredible bravery and have courageously spoken out against knife crime since his death, which is something they should never have to do.

“Since Mikey’s death, other young lives have been lost across our policing area and as a result we have launched a proactive operation to tackle and disrupt serious violence and knife crime involving young people.

“However, we know police enforcement alone won’t solve the problem and we’re working closely with our local authority partners, our colleagues in education and health and the Violence Reduction Partnership to identify the root causes and divert young people away from criminality.

“Our communities are also key and we’d like to encourage parents to talk to their children about knife crime – to make sure that they understand the terrible consequences carrying a knife can have and also how to report if they have concerns about someone they know carrying a knife.”