“THE ANCIENT TRADITION BEGINS!” 👑🔑 — KING CHARLES KICKS OFF ROYAL WEEK IN SCOTLAND WITH THE CENTURIES-OLD CEREMONY OF THE KEYS

King Charles is ringing in Royal Week in Scotland with an ancient tradition.

On the morning of June 30, the King, 77, kicked off the special week by participating in the historic Ceremony of the Keys in the gardens of the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh, his official royal residence in Scotland.

The centuries-old ceremony sees the sovereign symbolically accept the keys to the city of Edinburgh and immediately return them for safekeeping. The event always inaugurates Royal Week in Scotland, which runs this year from Tuesday, June 30 to Friday, July 3.

King Charles arrived via helicopter and met Service Chiefs, before receiving a Royal Salute and inspecting the Balaklava Company, 5th Battalion Royal Regiment of Scotland Guard of Honour.

The Lord Provost of Edinburgh Robert Aldridge then presented the King with the keys to the city on a cushion, offering them with the traditional words.

“We, the Lord Provost and members of the City of Edinburgh Council, welcome Your Majesty to the capital city of your ancient and hereditary kingdom of Scotland, and offer for your gracious acceptance the keys of Your Majesty’s good city of Edinburgh,” the Lord Provost said, the BBC reported.

In response, the King replied, “I return these keys perfectly convinced that they cannot be placed in better hands than those of the Lord Provost and councillors of my good city of Edinburgh.”

Music from the Band of the Royal Regiment of Scotland and Pipes and Drums of 2nd Battalion Royal Regiment of Scotland played during the pageantry, and the Royal Company of Archers, nicknamed “The King’s Bodyguard for Scotland,” were also on parade.

The tradition begins Royal Week, the designated time that the sovereign spends touring Scotland each summer to meet people from all walks of life and celebrate the best of Scottish culture, achievement and community.

While the King’s exact Royal Week plans vary each year, staples on the schedule usually include an investiture service and garden party, two other outings he packed in on Tuesday.

After presenting the honors at the investiture at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the monarch donned a top hat for a garden party at the palace with Queen Camilla, Princess Anne and Prince Edward.

The King, Queen and other working royal family members will attend events across Scotland through Friday for Royal Week festivities, and Queen Camilla sparked controversy for welcoming Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling to Holyrood on Tuesday.

Royal Week falls ahead of Prince Harry’s upcoming trip to the United Kingdom. The moment would be a momentous event as he plans to bring his wife, Meghan Markle, and their children, Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, back to his homeland for the first time in four years amid a familial rift and ongoing security concerns. Although questions over police protection still loom, a spokesperson for the Duke of Sussex said on June 29 that Harry “continues to explore every available option to enable the visit to proceed safely and to give his children the opportunity to enjoy the U.K.”

Source: https://people.com/king-charles-ancient-ceremony-kick-off-royal-week-scotland-12009770