King Charles III addresses the world for the first time as Britain’s new monarch

A period of Royal Mourning will be observed in the UK from now until seven days after The Queen’s Funeral.

King Charles III has addressed Great Britain and the onlooking world for the very first time since the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II. Expressing his "personal grief", the new monarch also paid tribute to the "gratitude’" he has for the support of the British public just 24 hours after being named as King. "I pay tribute to my mother’s memory and I honour her life of service", he added. "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.

"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."

[caption id="attachment_358022" align="alignnone" width="1952"] King Charles III during his first address as King following Queen Elizabeth's death. Credit: BBC[/caption]

The monarch said the "affection, admiration and respect" the Queen inspired "became the hallmark of her reign".

He added: "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."

The king had already announced that a "period of Royal Mourning will be observed from now until seven days after The Queen’s Funeral". Flags at Royal Residences will remain at half-mast until 8am on the final day of mourning. [caption id="attachment_358023" align="alignnone" width="1940"] King Charles III during his first address as monarch. Credit: BBC[/caption] New currency bearing Charles' image will be minted and will eventually enter circulation. Gradually, this will replace the notes and coins with Queen Elizabeth's face on them, but this is likely to take several years. Royal Mail will now stop producing Queen Elizabeth II-marked stamps and will begin the process of creating new ones. In a statement, Royal Mail has confirmed that "stamps bearing the image of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II remain valid for use" until the end of January 2023. Meanwhile, UK passports will still be valid but new ones will now have wording updated to 'His Majesty', the BBC reports.