KING Charles III has recorded a message and released a favourite photograph of Elizabeth II to mark the first anniversary of his mother’s death.
In the message, the King said he recalled the late Queen’s “devoted service and all she meant to so many of us”.
The photograph chosen by the King shows a young Queen, then 42, at an official portrait sitting in 1968.
Elizabeth II died aged 96 at Balmoral Castle on 8 September last year.
It came just months after her Platinum Jubilee marking 70 years on the throne.
In his short tribute, which will be released on Friday, the King thanked the nation for the “love and support” shown to him and Queen Camilla during his first year as monarch.
“In marking the first anniversary of Her Late Majesty’s death and my accession, we recall with great affection her long life, devoted service and all she meant to so many of us,” the King said.
“I am deeply grateful, too, for the love and support that has been shown to my wife and myself during this year as we do our utmost to be of service to you all.”
His written message, which accompanies the audio recording, is signed Charles R.
The formal colour photograph was taken by Cecil Beaton on 16 October 1968 and has not been released until now.
It shows the late Queen standing sideways and smiling in her Garter robes, wearing the Grand Duchess Vladimir’s Tiara, made of 15 interlaced diamond circles.
The King has spent the summer at his Birkhall residence and Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire.
On Friday morning he and Queen Camilla will attend the nearby Crathie Kirk church for private memorial prayers.
The Prince and Princess of Wales, who are visiting west Wales, will commemorate the life of the late Queen with a small private service at St Davids Cathedral.
In his own message, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the scale of the late Queen’s service “only seems greater” a year after her death.
“Her devotion to the nations of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth only seems deeper,” he said.