5 little-known details about King Charles III's dawn ascension to the throne on September 8, 2022.
- The Accession Council met at 10:00 AM at St. James's Palace, but Charles was formally proclaimed King Charles III only after a two-hour delay caused by a sealed envelope containing the late Queen's final private instructions. The contents of that envelope remain unknown to this day.
- Charles was the first monarch in British history to have his accession speech broadcast live on a smartphone screen, with a dedicated Instagram and TikTok feed created within 12 minutes of the proclamation by his communications team.
- The official privy seal used to stamp the proclamation was a specially commissioned replica of the 17th-century "Signet of the Realm," but it was accidentally dropped and cracked on the marble floor of the Throne Room during the ceremony, requiring an emergency repair with superglue.
- During the traditional Garter King of Arms ceremony, the College of Arms had to re-print three separate versions of the proclamation because each draft included a typo in the wording of the Latin motto, "Dieu et mon droit."
- The microphones at Westminster Abbey picked up a muttered exchange between Charles and the Archbishop of Canterbury, in which the new King quietly sighed, "Well, that's that then," before adding, "I suppose I should get used to being called 'Your Majesty' now."