Prince of Wales Steps in for Queen during State Opening of Parliament

Prince Charles stepped in for the Queen during the State Opening of Parliament. Sources say the absence is because of a health issue which began last fall, as well as episodic mobility issues. 

It's on very rare occasions that the Queen does not attend the State Opening of Parliament. The last two times were in 1959 and 1963 because she was pregnant with Prince Andrew and Prince Edward, respectively. At the time, the Lord Chancellor read the Queen's Speech.

The Queen has been delegating more of her duties to other members of the Royal Family, signalling the beginning of a transition from one monarch to the next.

Accompanying the Prince of Wales was the Duchess of Cornwall and the Duke of Cambridge. 

You can watch raw coverage of the State Opening below:

I've skipped the first 10 minutes of the video, which is footage of 10 Downing Street (not much happening).

I'll write about some of the highlights from the footage.

There are some enjoyable aerial shots of Buckingham Palace throughout the video. During the arrival of the Prince of Wales, Duchess of Cornwall and Duke of Cambridge, you can hear the bells ringing (at the 36:00 mark). 

The video cuts to the Central Lobby, where people have congregated to watch the proceedings.

The State Opening of Parliament is symbolically important because the Palace of Westminster was once a Palace exclusively. The last sovereign to live at the Palace of Westminster was King Henry VIII. This is a day when the House of Commons, House of Lords and the Sovereign come together at one time and one place.

In 1965, the Queen was instrumental in handing the Palace of Westminster to the House of Lords and the Commons. The Queen agreed with Harold Wilson, Prime Minister at the time, that it was inappropriate for the Sovereign to own the democratically elected Chamber of Parliament.

The Sovereign has retained a few parts of the Palace, including the Sovereign's entrance (where you see the Prince of Wales, Duchess of Cornwall and Duke of Cambridge enter), the Royal Gallery, Westminster's Hall and the Queen's Robing Room.

At the 58:00 mark the footage cuts to the House of Lords where the Prince of Wales enters. He sits on the Consort's Throne (the same chair as Prince Philip), and the Imperial State Crown sits on a velvet cushion in place of the Queen's Throne.

The footage then cuts to the House of Commons where the doors are closed on the Black Rod who then knocks three times. The doors are opened and the Black Rod summons the commons to walk to the House of Lords to receive the Queen's speech. 

Speeches of this nature began in the 16th century. The current proceedings of the Queen's Speech dates back to Queen Victoria when in 1852 Parliament reopened after the Great Fire of 1834.

The Prince of Wales is then handed the Queen's speech, written by the Prime Minister and waits until the commons have gathered.

Some of the topics covered in the Speech were: the economy, police, NHS, defense of democracy, empowerment of local leaders, to modernize rail service, clean energy, and reforms to education.

Once the Queen's speech is read, the Royal procession leaves in the opposite order that it entered.