Royal family in Scotland: Latest news and pictures of King Charles and Queen Camilla in Edinburgh celebrations
King Charles and Queen Camilla will be taking part in a series of events in Scotland, including a celebration of the 900th anniversary of the city of Edinburgh, as they host Royal Week from their official residence at the Palace of Holyroodhouse
Royals in Scotland
Key Events
- The King and Queen will take part in a series of events in Scotland, including a celebration of the 900th anniversary of the city of Edinburgh
- Author Sir Alexander McCall Smith is to be knighted at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh
'Precious Ramotswe would be happy' says Alexander McCall Smith
Author Sir Alexander McCall Smith has said his knighthood is a “wonderful thing” and that his famous fictional detective Mma Precious Ramotswe would be “very happy” for him after being honoured by the King.
The writer of The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series was knighted for services to literature, academia and charity at an investiture ceremony at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh earlier today.
The author, an emeritus professor of medical law at the University of Edinburgh, is also known for series including the 44 Scotland Street novels, the Isabel Dalhousie collection, and the von Igelfeld books.
Speaking after the ceremony, he said: “It’s a wonderful thing, I’m most grateful, it’s a very nice thing to happen so I’m very pleased, but of course obviously behind it there are all sorts of other people who have made it happen so I think of them.”
Asked what Mma Ramotswe would think about the knighthood, he said: “Well I think Mma Ramotswe would be very pleased, she likes jewellery and decorations and she’d say that’s rather a nice badge you’ve got there, so she would be very happy I think, it’s been a long journey I’ve had with her, conversation over many years.
“I wish she could be with us today but she’s entirely fictional.”
Sir Alexander enjoyed speaking to the King and said: “The King is marvellous, he’s an example to all of us, he does all these things and does them so beautifully in such a friendly fashion.”
Others to be honoured on Tuesday, after being named in the King’s New Year Honours, include Paul Mealor, professor of composition at the University of Aberdeen.
He became a Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order – a gift given by the King to people who have served him or the monarchy in a personal way.
Prof Mealor composed Coronation Kyrie for the King’s coronation last year and has composed music for other royal occasions over the past decade, including the wedding of the Prince and Princess of Wales in 2011, and Charles’s 65th, 70th and 75th birthdays.
He also composed music for the Honours of Scotland service which was held at St Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh last summer to mark the coronation.
Others honoured included Professor Sir Jim McDonald, principal of the University of Strathclyde, who was appointed Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire for services to engineering, education and energy.
Liz Smith, a former Scotland cricketer who is now a Conservative MSP, became a CBE for services to sport.
Members of the emergency services were also among the more than 50 people honoured on Tuesday.
They included Police Scotland Chief Superintendent Faroque Hussain, who received the King’s Police Medal.
Mr Hussain, from Largs, North Ayrshire, is the first ethnic minority police officer to progress through the ranks from constable to the post of chief superintendent.
Retired chief superintendent Carol McGuire, from Symington in South Ayrshire, and Police constable Stephanie Rose, from Denny near Falkirk, also received the King’s Police Medal.
Guard of Honour
New pictures have emerged of King Charles’ Ceremony of the Keys in Holyrood.
The King walked past the Guard of Honour, speaking to some of the servicemen, before touching keys laid on a red velvet cushion.
Ceremony of the Keys
It is far removed from the typical Edinburgh visitor’s key pick up from a lock box outside of their AirBnB.
Today, King Charles began his official stay in Scotland by receiving the keys to the City of Edinburgh.
The King took part in the Ceremony of the Keys in the garden of the Palace of Holyroodhouse, his official residence in the Scottish capital.
He was welcomed by the Lord Provost, City of Edinburgh councillor Robert Aldridge, who presented the keys on a red velvet cushion which Charles symbolically touched.
Mr Aldridge told the King, after he arrived by helicopter with the Queen: “We, the Lord Provost and members of the City of Edinburgh Council, welcome Your Majesty to the capital city of your ancient and hereditary kingdom of Scotland and offer for your gracious acceptance the keys of Your Majesty’s good City of Edinburgh.”
Charles gave the traditional reply: “I return these keys perfectly convinced that they cannot be placed in better hands than those of the Lord Provost and councillors of my good City of Edinburgh.”
Each year the monarch traditionally spends a week based at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, known as Holyrood Week or Royal Week in Scotland.
This year’s Holyrood Week is shorter then in previous years because the General Election has meant the royal family has postponed any engagements “which may appear to divert attention or distract from the election campaign”.
Before the ceremony, the palace’s garden was transformed into a parade ground, where the King met senior military and uniformed figures including Chief Constable of Police Scotland Jo Farrell, before receiving a royal salute and inspecting a Guard of Honour of soldiers from Balaklava Company, 5 Scots.
Also lined up were the Royal Company of Archers, who serve as the sovereign’s ceremonial bodyguard for Scotland – a role first created in 1822 for King George VI.
The Band of the Royal Regiment of Scotland and the Pipes and Drums of 2nd Battalion Royal Regiment of Scotland were on parade for the occasion.
The King walked past the Guard of Honour, casting his eye over the servicemen and stopping to talk to some of them, and he also chatted to members of the military bands.
King Charles arrives at the Palace of Holyroodhouse
.jpg?crop=3:2,smart&trim=&width=640&quality=65)
The Order of the Thistle
Our heritage correspondent Alison Campsie has updated on King Charles’s plans for Wednesday:
The King will be joined by Queen Camilla, the Duke of Rothesay and The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh at a service at St Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh to install two new members of the Order of the Thistle, Scotland’s oldest chivalric order.
The King's appearance will be among the first in Scotland since his cancer diagnosis was made public in February and comes as part of Royal Week in Scotland. The Duchess of Rothesay, who is also being treated for cancer, will not attend the service.
The King has personally selected Sir Geoff Palmer, human rights activist and educator on Scotland and slavery; forensic anthropologist Professor Baroness Black of Strome and lawyer and women’s rights campaigner Baroness Helena Kennedy of The Shaws to join the order.
The Most and Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle recognises those who have contributed greatly to Scottish life through excellence in their professional life with medicine, law, academia, politics and business all represented among the order’s 16 knights and ladies.
The King also has the capacity to appoint Royal Knights to the order, with Queen Camilla and the Duke of Rothesay among them.
The order may have been founded by James III (1488 to 1513) who was responsible for changes in royal symbolism in Scotland, including the adoption of the thistle as the royal plant badge.
James VII (1633–1701) re-established the Order to reward Scottish peers who supported the king’s political and religious aims.
The motto of the order – Nemo me impune lacessit – was the motto of the Stuart dynasty in Scotland from at least the reign of James VI.
McCall Smith to be knighted
Author Sir Alexander McCall Smith is to be knighted at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.
He will be given the honour for services to literature, academia and charity at an investiture ceremony later today.
The writer, creator of The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series, has written and contributed to more than 100 books including short story collections, children’s books and specialist academic titles.
The detective agency series, set in Botswana, has now sold more than 20 million copies in the English language alone.
The author, an emeritus professor of medical law at the University of Edinburgh, is also known for series including the 44 Scotland Street novels, the Isabel Dalhousie collection, and the von Igelfeld books.
Now 75, he was born in what was then known as Southern Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, and made Edinburgh his home after studying there.
He conceived the idea of the Great Tapestry of Scotland, now housed in Galashiels.
He is also a patron of several charities including The Eric Liddell Community, a care charity and community hub in Edinburgh.
Others to be honoured today, after being named in the King’s New Year Honours, include Paul Mealor, professor of composition at the University of Aberdeen.
He will become a Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order (LVO) – a gift given by the King to people who have served him or the monarchy in a personal way.
Prof Mealor composed Coronation Kyrie for the King’s coronation last year and has composed music for other royal occasions over the past decade, including the wedding of the Prince and Princess of Wales in 2011, and Charles’s 65th, 70th and 75th birthdays.
Professor Sir Jim McDonald, principal of the University of Strathclyde, will be appointed to the most senior rank of the Order of the British Empire.
He was appointed Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire in the New Year Honours list, for services to engineering, education and energy.
Sir Jim became principal and vice-chancellor of the university in March 2009 following a long association with Strathclyde, studying his bachelor of science, masters and PhD degrees in the areas of electronic and electrical engineering, power systems and energy economics.
Liz Smith, a former Scotland cricketer who is now a Conservative MSP, will become a CBE for services to sport.
The Mid Scotland and Fife MSP won seven caps with the Scottish Ladies’ Cricket XI and is also a former president of the Scottish Women’s Cricket Association.
She no longer plays professionally but is still involved in the sport through coaching.
Members of the emergency services will also be honoured on Tuesday.
They include Police Scotland Chief Superintendent Faroque Hussain, who will receive the King’s Police Medal.
Mr Hussain, from Largs, is the first ethnic minority police officer to progress through the ranks from constable to the post of chief superintendent.
The tactical firearms commander won praise for his adept handling of the response to Operation Unicorn – where he was responsible for all firearms officers involved in the large-scale policing operation put in place following the death of the Queen in September 2022.
Retired chief superintendent Carol McGuire, from Symington, and Police Constable Stephanie Rose, from Denny, will receive the King’s Police Medal.
Ms McGuire joined Strathclyde Police in 1995 and retired in October last year.
During the course of her career she undertook a secondment to the football co-ordination unit Scotland, where she developed the country’s first national strategy for the policing of football.
Pc Rose developed the Keep Safe initiative in partnership with I Am Me Scotland, which was piloted in Renfrewshire in 2014 before becoming a national programme in 2015.
The initiative creates a network of local businesses to establish Keep Safe places for disabled, vulnerable and elderly people to go if they feel lost, confused, scared or intimidated, or have been the victim of a crime.
Welcome to Royal Week
King Charles and Queen Camilla will travel to the Scottish capital for two days of royal engagements, from the King presenting awards at an investiture ceremony to the Queen hosting a reception for bookshop owners, writers and literary organisations.
Each year the monarch traditionally spends a week based at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh, known as Holyrood Week or Royal Week in Scotland.
Holyrood Week is shorter than in previous years as the General Election has meant the royal family has postponed any engagements “which may appear to divert attention or distract from the election campaign”.
The King will begin his official engagements in Scotland by inspecting a guard of honour in the Palace of Holyroodhouse gardens, and then attending the Ceremony of the Keys, where he will be presented with the keys to the city.
Later Charles will preside over the investiture ceremony where recipients include bestselling author Sir Alexander McCall Smith, creator of The No 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series and the 44 Scotland Street novels, who will receive a knighthood for services to literature, academia and charity.
Camilla will hold a reception to celebrate those promoting Scottish literacy, before the King and his wife host guests at a garden party, alongside the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh.
On Wednesday the King and Queen will be joined by the Prince of Wales, whose Scottish title is the Duke of Rothesay, at the Thistle Service at St Giles’ Cathedral, where Camilla and Edward will be appointed to the Order of the Thistle.
Charles and Camilla will round off the trip by joining a celebration with various performers, guests and organisations at Edinburgh Castle to mark the city’s 900th anniversary.
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.