Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live Event/Special
King Charles III Delivers First Address as King; Church Service Held in Honor of Queen Elizabeth. Aired 1-1:30p ET
Aired September 09, 2022 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[13:00:00]
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: And certainly in the last -- obviously, as soon as we heard that his mother was under grave health concerns.
We're going to see. In a few seconds, it's going to start, and we're going to see what he has to say. But, remember, it happens at a moment where this country is in great crisis.
DON LEMON, CNN HOST: You can't underestimate the power of the pictures that happened today as he entered Buckingham Palace and then left as well.
MAX FOSTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And went in and recorded the speech.
LEMON: And went to record the speech.
Let's listen to the speech now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KING CHARLES III, UNITED KINGDOM: 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 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, humor and an unerring ability always to see the best in people.
I pay tribute to my mother's memory, and I honor 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.
[13:05:02]
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 endeavor 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 center 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.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC)
[13:13:54]
VERY REV. ANDREW TREMLETT, DEAN DESIGNATE OF ST. PAUL'S CATHEDRAL: We shall not all die, but we shall be changed.
The trumpet shall sound and the dead will rise immortal, and we shall be changed. The perishable must be clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal must be clothed with immortality. We shall not all die.
CONGREGATION: But we shall be changed.
TREMLETT: With proud thanksgiving, we gather in this cathedral today to mourn the death of our sovereign lady, Queen Elizabeth II. We remember her long life spent in the service of this country and of
her commonwealth realms around the world. We give thanks for a life of devotion to God, her creator, redeemer, and sustainer, and of devotion to all her people.
As we call to mind the promise made at her coronation that all her judgments should be guided by law, justice and mercy, we rejoice in her steady acceptance of this vocation. We celebrate her love for her family, her commitment to duty, and her calling to create unity and concord at the heart of the commonwealth.
[13:15:22]
We pray for the royal family as they mourn their loss. We pray too for our most gracious sovereign lord, the king. By placing all his trust in God, he too may rule over us in peace with justice and compassion.
So, let us pray.
Eternal lord God, you hold all souls in life. Send forth, we pray upon your servant Elizabeth and upon your whole church in earth and heaven, the brightness of your light and peace. And grant that we, following the good example of those who have faithfully served you here and are now addressed, may at the last enter with them into the fullness of eternal joy.
In Jesus Christ our savior, amen.
CONGREGATION: Amen.
(MUSIC)
[13:20:46]
REV. NEIL EVANS, CANON IN RESIDENCE, ST. PAUL'S CATHEDRAL: The spirit of the lord God is upon me.
Because the lord has anointed me, he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and release to the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, to provide for those who mourn in Zion, to give them a garland, instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise, instead of the faint spirit.
They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the lord to display his glory.
(MUSIC)
[13:26:51]
LIZ TRUSS, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves.
If we live, we live to the lord. And if we die, we die to the lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the lord's. For, to this end, Christ died and lived again, so that he might be lord of both the dead and the living.
Why do you pass judgment on your brother or sister? Or, you, why do you despise your brother or sister? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. For it is written, as I live, says the lord, every knee shall bow to me and every tongue shall give praise to God.
So, then each of us will be accountable to God.
(MUSIC)
