Prince Harry breaks his silence after Queen Elizabeth’s death and issues his first official statement

Prince Harry broke his silence after Queen Elizabeth’s death and issued his first official statement.

The prince said he had treasured his moments with his grandmother.

The words were posted on the Archwell Foundation website by Harry and his wife, Meghan.

Prince Harry, one of Queen Elizabeth II’s grandsons, hailed the monarch as a «guiding compass» and extolled her «unwavering grace and dignity» on a day when citizens will bid the queen farewell at St. Giles in Edinburgh.

In a personal statement posted Monday on Harry and his wife Meghan’s Archwell Foundation website, the prince said he had treasured their moments together «from my earliest childhood memories with you, to meeting you for the first time as my Commander-in-Chief, to the first moment you met my darling wife and hugged your beloved great-grandchildren.”

Prince Harry breaks his silence

Photo: AP

Amid bitter tensions in the House of Windsor, Harry gave up his role as a working member of the royal family and moved to the United States two years ago. There was a possible hint of reconciliation on Saturday when the Harry and Meghan joined his brother, Prince William and his wife, Kate, to greet mourners outside Windsor Castle, according to the AP.

Harry’s statement kicked off another day of historic events and traditions following the death of a British sovereign. King Charles III pledged on Monday to follow his late mother’s example of «selfless duty» as he addressed lawmakers from both houses of parliament in London before boarding a plane to Edinburgh to be with the coffin of the late queen while it rests in the Scottish capital.

The queen was a “guiding compass”

Photo: AP

Hundreds of lawmakers thronged the 1,000-year-old Westminster Hall in the Houses of Parliament for the service, rich in pageantry, in which the Parliament offered its condolences to the king and he responded. A fanfare of trumpets greeted the king and his wife Camilla, the queen consort, as they entered the room which was packed with hundreds of lawmakers.

Charles told members of the House of Commons and House of Lords that he would follow his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, in upholding «the precious principles of constitutional government» that underpin the UK political system.

The new king pays tribute to his mother

Photo: AP

The new king paid tribute to his mother, saying: «As Shakespeare said of the former Queen Elizabeth, she was a model for all living princes.» The ceremony was held in Westminster Hall because monarchs are not allowed to enter the House of Commons.

That rule dates back to the 17th century, when King Charles I tried to break in and arrest lawmakers. This confrontation between the crown and Parliament led to a civil war that ended with the king’s beheading in 1649.

What they will do with Queen Elizabeth’s coffin

Photo: AP

The new king was then due to fly to Edinburgh and walk alongside his mother’s coffin in its slow funeral procession from Holyroodhouse to St. Giles’ Cathedral, where the crown of Scotland would be placed on the coffin before an act of prayer and reflection about the life and 70-year reign of the popular queen.

The coffin will remain in the cathedral for 24 hours to give the public a chance to pay their respects. On Tuesday, it will travel by plane to London, where a funeral chapel will be set up in Parliament from Wednesday afternoon until the morning of the funeral on September 19.