Prince Charles automatically became King Charles III when the Queen passed away at Balmoral on Thursday afternoon but on Saturday morning at St James’s Palace in London he appeared before the “Accession Council”, basically a 200-strong gathering of the country’s great and the good, to set the formal seal on the succession.

Apart from being confirmed as the new monarch, he was also made head of the Commonwealth, something that was close to the heart of the late Queen.

It will be recalled that the Queen made an extraordinary personal request at the 2018 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in London.

She said then: “It is my sincere wish that the Commonwealth will continue to offer stability and continuity for future generations, and will decide that one day The Prince of Wales should carry on the important work started by my father in 1949.”

Commonwealth leaders, among them Narendra Modi, could hardly say no to the Queen.

The official proclamation on Saturday said that “Prince Charles Philip Arthur George, is now by the death of our late sovereign of happy memory, become our only lawful and happy liege lord, Charles III”.

It added: “By the grace of god of the UK of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of his other realms and territory, King, head of the commonwealth, defender of the faith, to whom we do acknowledge all faith and obedience with humble affection, beseeching God by whom kings and queens do reign to bless his majesty with long and happy years to reign over us.”

The last time there was an Accession Council was 70 years ago, when the Queen appeared at St James’s Palace as a 25-year-old mother in a room “full of white old men”.

Charles was left at home.

This time the room was still full of white old men but to be fair, there were several women and a smattering of black and brown faces, includ