In the days following Queen Elizabeth’s death, King Charles and other senior members of the royal family had their own private moments mourning their mother and grandmother. But Charles, along with Princess Anne and Prince Edward, and the newly named Prince and Princess of Wales, William and Kate, were also out and about, greeting people on walks or looking at the many flowers left on the gates and in other royal locations across the UK On Thursday at Sandringham, the royal estate in Norfolk, north of London, Prince William spoke of how walking behind his grandmother’s coffin the day before reminded him of walking behind the coffin of his mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1997. . “I mean yesterday’s ride was challenging, it brought back some memories.” the BBC reported which William said to a woman outside Sandringham House. Earlier, there was also an unprecedented opportunity for a more public look at one of the most solemn and ceremonial moments of any royal succession. The Accession Council, where Charles was formally proclaimed King, was televised. While all of this comes early in Charles’ reign, it raises the possibility that he will lead a monarchy that is, at least in small measure, trying to be more open and accessible than it was before. King Charles and Camilla, the Queen’s consort, greet well-wishers as they arrive at Hillsborough Castle in Belfast on Tuesday. Charles became monarch on the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth, on September 8. (Niall Carson/AFP/Getty Images) Craig Prescott, a constitutional expert at Bangor University in Wales, said he thinks there needs to be more transparency. “I was surprised when Charles stepped outside Buckingham Palace for the first time on Friday [the day after the Queen’s death] and how long he spent with the crowd. I thought it was a sign of openness again,” Prescott said in an interview. “All the senior members of the royal family have gone on walks and seen flowers and things, which was perhaps to some extent expected, but it also shows that they want to be open.” Prescott’s interest was also drawn by the fact that Saturday’s Accession Council was televised. “I’m not sure when that was decided,” he said, noting that he remembers watching some academic debates three or four years ago and “we were wondering if it was going to be televised.” “It wasn’t immediately obvious that it would be.” WATCHES | Charles says he will follow his mother’s example as he is officially proclaimed King:

Personal statement of King Charles

King Charles vowed to follow his mother’s “inspiring example” as he officially assumed the duties of monarch during an accession ceremony on Saturday. But it was, as were the speeches Charles made as he toured the UK in the days immediately following the Queen’s death, and will likely continue on Friday as he visits Wales. “He thought very carefully about it,” Prescott said, “and he thought very carefully about how the United Kingdom is now a union of four different nations and the need to have the monarchy in all four nations.” Prescott called this “a very early signal” of how Charles sees his role in a “more open and more transparent monarchy”. Observers also noted what Charles was saying in those early days. “The speeches keep coming,” author and historian Sarah Gristwood told Matt Galloway, host of CBC Radio’s The Current, earlier this week. “We know he spoke at Westminster Hall [Monday morning], unusually, and naturally, last Friday’s address to the nation was a first. It’s not something that, you know, monarchs normally have to do to jump right into the media.” Prince Charles, standing with Queen Elizabeth during events to celebrate her Platinum Jubilee in June, referred to the speech she gave on her 21st birthday when she said her whole life would be dedicated to service. (Hannah McKay/The Associated Press) Again and again, Gristwood said, Charles referred to the speech his mother had given on her 21st birthday, when she said her whole life would be devoted to service. “And he said he would serve with loyalty and respect and love, and that … love is quite 21st century. It’s quite moving. It’s not something you can really imagine previous monarchs saying,” Gristwood said. Charles’ early days are also under intense scrutiny for any insight they may provide into what kind of king he will be and how he might balance his previous candor with the new role he finds himself in. “We were all wondering that. But he gave some clues there, too,” Gristwood told Galloway. “He mentioned in that speech on Friday that as King, he would have to step away from a number of his charities and by implication causes, partly no doubt because he really … won’t have time. But partly, perhaps, because he is no longer appropriate for him to appear to be campaigning in the same way.” WATCHES | King Charles and his role in politics:

The changing role of King Charles in politics

King Charles was once called the ‘mixing prince’ for his memoranda to government ministers about the causes that most interested him. But as King, he will be under greater pressure to maintain political neutrality. Gristwood suggested that there might be some exception to this on the issue of the environment, an issue Charles had been discussing and raising the alarm for several decades. “I think it’s something that, you know, most of us would happily forgive him putting a bit of pressure on ministers for.” Prescott said the fact that there was so much television coverage of Charles’ meet and greets showed that perhaps the monarchy under him is “a bit more in tune with modern times”. WATCHES | The Queen lies in state at Westminster Hall:

The Queen is in state after leaving Buckingham Palace for the last time

Queen Elizabeth is now lying in state at Westminster Hall in London following a funeral procession, which was attended by the royal family, who carried her coffin from Buckingham Palace. Many of those watching describe being overcome with emotion. He also sees further importance in televising the Accession Council. “I think it’s an indication that there’s an acceptance that you can’t rely on the mystery of the monarchy in the same way,” Prescott said. “It needs to be seen, and so television is the best way to do it. The Queen has done it herself, so it shouldn’t be a surprise.” Prescott looks at a moment as perhaps also telegraphs how Charles will interact with people. “Apparently when the King went to meet Liz Truss, Mr [U.K.] prime minister, moved towards her as much as she towards him, a natural thing, while [with the Queen] … you went to her,” Prescott said. “Charles will be out there a little more, I think — you’ll be able to deal with him a little more, I think, than you could with the Queen.”

We remember the Queen

Flowers and tributes are displayed at Green Park in London on Thursday to honor Queen Elizabeth. (Paul Ellis/AFP/Getty Images) Long before the queue began to form for those wishing to lay Queen Elizabeth’s coffin in state, people were making their own journeys to places associated with her, particularly the gates outside Buckingham Palace. A Fascinator reader emailed to say he and his partner got there as soon as possible after hearing of her death and left flowers and a Canadian flag at the gates. “There was no hesitation that we both needed to go to Buckingham Palace as soon as possible to commemorate her life and her extraordinary 70 years of public service,” said Thomas Hill, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oxford who traveled with partner of Martina Tashkova from Oxford in London. Hill, 32, recalled Christmases growing up in London and watching the Queen’s Christmas message on TV with his family. “At the end of each message, we would all somehow feel comforted and [it] gave us strength to look into the next year,” Hill said Thursday night. “She was like the wise/warm family member (mother, grandmother and great-grandmother) to ours and many households that although not physically with us , they felt like she was. “I, like so many others, will miss these messages very much.” WATCHES | Why people leave flowers to honor Elizabeth:

The people behind the flowers for Queen Elizabeth

Flowers are being picked in a park next to Buckingham Palace in a growing floral tribute to Queen Elizabeth. CBC’s The National followed along with those who brought flowers for a woman they never met but felt they did. For the next three days, however, most attention is on Westminster Hall. People who have stood in line for hours will have a brief moment of reflection as they silently start by the casket. Keith Smart, an engineer and British Army veteran, wiped away tears as he left the room. He waited more than 10 hours for the chance to say goodbye. “Everyone in the crowd was well behaved. There was no malice, everyone was a friend. It was fantastic,” he said. “And then, to get into that room and see that, I just broke in. I didn’t bend—I knelt on the floor, on my knees, bowed my head to the queen.” Tom Hill, a Canadian postdoctoral scientist at the University of Oxford, and his partner Martina Tashkova left flowers and a Canadian flag at the gates of Buckingham Palace in honor of Queen Elizabeth. (Submitted by Tom Hill) While all of this takes place in a Gothic building of deep political and historical significance dating back to 1097, the real story of the recumbent is more recent — relatively. Lying in the state is a “modern invention — or reinvention,” Judith Rowbotham, a social and cultural scholar and visiting research professor at the University of Plymouth in southwest England, told a…