King Charles leads Remembrance Sunday service at the Cenotaph for the first time as monarch
13 November 2022, 11:04 | Updated: 13 November 2022, 11:46
King Charles has led the Remembrance Sunday service in Whitehall for the first time as monarch.
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He laid a wreath at the Cenotaph alongside other royals and senior politicians.
The King, clutching a sword, saluted the memorial before the two minutes' silence and the performance of the Last Post.
He then laid his newly-designed poppy wreath and saluted again in front of representatives of the armed forces and religious figures who lined Whitehall, while observers looked on from Government buildings on the sides.
The monarch was joined by Prince William, Princess Anne and Prince Edward. Queen Consort Camilla and the Princess of Wales looked on from a balcony.
Rishi Sunak was also at the Cenotaph to pay tribute to the war dead, joined by ex-Prime Ministers including his immediate predecessor, Liz Truss.
Read more: King hands hundreds of lower-paid Buckingham Palace staff £600 cost of living bonus
Detachments of the Royal Air Force, Royal Navy, Royal Marines and the Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service watched on.
The service ended with the Lord's Prayer and God Save the King ahead of the military parade.
For many Brits, this will be the first Remembrance Sunday service they can remember where the Queen was not head of state.
Chief of the Defence Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin said the service was extra poignant after the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
"I think Remembrance Sunday is always poignant," he told Sky News.
"I think it's poignant for the whole nation, this special moment when we pause to reflect on the sacrifice and commitment of others to provide our freedom today.
"I think there's a special poignancy this year with both the loss of Her Majesty, another loss of a Second World War veteran.
"I also think it's poignant when we have once again the spectre of war in Europe and all that that entails, and a country that's been invaded and is fighting for its freedom."
