Inside Westminster Hall, where Charles III felt the 'weight of history' in a rare address

King Charles III admitted he 'felt the weight of history' as he addressed MPs and peers in the 900-year-old Westminster Hall today.

Speaking in a rare joint session of the two Houses of Parliament, he pointed to the memorials around him to the late Queen - a testament to her record 70 years on the throne.

The monarch spoke in the oldest part of the Palace of Westminster, where his namesake, King Charles I, was tried and sentenced at the end of the Civil War.

The Queen's father, George VI, was the first member of the Royal Family to address both Houses at Westminster Hall, nine days after the end of the Second World War.

The honor has been extended to a handful of foreign leaders, including French President Charles de Gaulle in 1960, South African leader Nelson Mandela in 1996, and US President Barack Obama in 2011.

Following in his mother's footsteps 10 years after her last speech at the historic venue, Charles III listened as the Speakers of the Commons and Lords offered their condolences on her death - and their best wishes to his successor.

The King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard at Westminster Hall (

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PENNSYLVANIA)

Prime Minister Liz Truss and Labor leader Keir Starmer arrive at Westminster Hall (

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PENNSYLVANIA)

The King told 1,200 guests seated in velvet armchairs: "I am deeply grateful for the addresses of condolence from the House of Lords and the House of Commons, which so touchingly encompass what our late sovereign, my beloved mother the queen, meant to all of us.

"As Shakespeare says of Queen Elizabeth, she was 'a model for all living princes'.

"As I stand before you today, I cannot help but feel the weight of history that surrounds us and reminds us of the vital parliamentary traditions to which Members of both Houses are dedicated, with such personal commitment...