PROCLAMATION OF ACCESSION OF HIS MAJESTY KING CHARLES III DELIVERED IN AN OFFICIAL CEREMONY IN PARLIAMENT SQUARE

Former Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. Hubert A. Ingraham, reads the Proclamation of the Accession of HIs Majesty King Charles III as Monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and head of the Commonwealth of Nations, at a ceremony in Parliament Square, Nassau, The Bahamas, September 11, 2022. Shown at left is Former Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. Perry G. Christie; and at right the Hon. Philip Davis, Prime Minister and Minister of Finance.

NASSAU, Bahamas, Sept. 12, 2022 (BIS) – With loud cheers, trumpet fanfare from the balcony of the Senate building, and a 21-gun salute by the Royal Bahamas Defence Force, the Proclamation of the Accession of His Majesty King Charles III as Monarch of the United Kingdom and head of the Commonwealth of Nations was officially delivered, Sunday, September 11, 2022, in Parliament Square, Downtown, Nassau.

The Hon. Philip Davis, Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, along with his wife, Ann Marie Davis, enter the Official Ceremony of Proclamation. They are followed by the Hon. Mr. Chief Justice Ian Winder. The Rt. Hon. Perry G. Christie and Rt. Hon. Hubert A. Ingraham, former Prime Ministers, are also shown.

Flanked by Prime Minister and Minister of Finance the Hon. Philip Davis and Former Prime Minster the Rt. Hon. Perry G. Christie, former Prime Minister the Rt. Hon. Hubert Ingraham read the Proclamation announcing King Charles III as the new head of state of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.

Signed by Governor General His Excellency the Most Hon. Sir Cornelius A. Smith, the Proclamation states:

“Whereas our late sovereign, Queen Elizabeth II, died on 8th day September 2022, by whose death the Crown of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas now and solely and rightfully comes to Prince Charles Philip Arthur George.  Now therefore I, the Most Hon. Sir Cornelius Smith, Governor-General of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, along with the President and Members of the Senate, the Speaker and Members of the House of Assembly, and the members of the late Majesty’s Privy Council in the realm of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, with one voice and consent, publish and proclaim that King Charles III by the death of our sovereign Queen Elizabeth II, is now formally proclaimed sovereign of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.  Given under my hand and the public seal in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas at Government House in the City of Nassau this 11th day of September 2022 and the first year of His Majesty’s reign.  God save the King.”

Onlookers line Bay Street to get a glimpse of the special ceremony.

Curious onlookers, including tourists, lined the Square to get a glimpse of the historic ceremony.

Also witnessing the occasion were: Sir Cornelius A. Smith; Mrs Ann Marie Davis, wife of the Prime Minister; Dame Marguerite Pindling, members of the judiciary, Senators, and Members of Parliament, members of the Diplomatic Corps, senior government officials, members of the Royal Bahamas Police Force and members of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force.

The signing of the Book of Condolences on the Passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II continued in the Senate Building following the brief ceremony.

King Charles III was formally proclaimed monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and head of the Commonwealth on Saturday, September 10, 2022, following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.