Watch as the proclamation for King Charles III is read out to crowds at Hillsborough Castle
Persistent drizzle could not dampen the enthusiasm of crowds who turned out at Hillsborough Castle to hear the accession proclamation for their new King, Charles III, today.
As well as dozens of invited guests, many members of the public also attended with their umbrellas to drink in the unique experience of paegentry and history in the making.
Amid heavy rain, around 200 invited guests were inside the castle grounds, while hundreds more watched from under umbrellas outside the main gates.
The ceremony began with the Royal Irish Regiment (RIR) band leading a procession of a Proclamation Guard from the 2nd Battalion of the RIR and representatives of Lisburn and Castlereagh Council to the front of the castle.
Prior to the proclamation, a 40-second fanfare was sounded by a bugler.
A bell in the clock tower of the castle’s Court House chimed once at 12pm to signal the start of the reading.
Following the proclamation, a 21-gun salute was fired by the 206 (Ulster) Battery Royal Artillery.
After the last round, the bugler sounded a royal salute before the RIR band played a verse of God Save The King. Invited guests then cheered three times for their new king.