THE King will be presented with the Honours of Scotland – the country’s crown jewels – at a service at St Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh today.
The event – often named Charles's 'second' or 'mini-coronation' – will be attended by leading figures from Scottish life and members of a people’s procession who will walk through the Scottish capital.
Protesters from UK-wide anti-monarchy group Republic are preparing to turnout after members of the group were wrongly arrested during the official coronation ceremony in May.
Republic is also collaborating with Scottish republican group Our Republic, who will be staging a rally at the Scottish Parliament.
Republic's team will be on the Royal Mile near St Giles’ Cathedral, with the group's CEO Graham Smith saying: "This pointless vanity parade in Edinburgh will cost Scottish taxpayers millions of pounds, and for what? So Charles can once again be centre of attention for a day.
"Everyone in the UK should have the right to choose our head of state - not be told it will be Charles. Charles does not represent the people of Scotland any more than he represents the rest of the UK."
Alister Jack, Secretary of State for Scotland, said: “The service in St Giles’ will be an uplifting and fitting celebration of our new King and Queen, and will reflect the great affection we Scots have for them.
“I know that thousands of Scots will line the streets of Edinburgh to pay tribute to the King and welcome the royal family, once again, to Scotland.”
The Scottish capital’s famous Royal Mile is part of the route of the people’s procession of around 100 individuals, representing all aspects of Scotland’s life, including charities which the King supports as patron, walking from Edinburgh Castle to the cathedral.
They will be led by Corporal Cruachan IV, the Shetland pony regimental mascot of the Royal Regiment of Scotland, and joined by other military units, part of more than 700 members of the armed forces taking part in the day.
The Honours of Scotland – crown, sword and sceptre – will soon follow escorted by military personnel from across the Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force through the Scottish capital.
The service will feature centuries-old aspects of Scottish royal tradition along with new additions such as pieces of music written specially for the occasion, a psalm sung in Gaelic and the use of passages from the New Testament in Scots.
The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the Rt Rev Sally Foster-Fulton, will preach the sermon and then provide a blessing to close the service.
Others involved will include violinist Nicola Benedetti, who will be among the musicians playing, and Olympic rower Dame Katherine Grainger, who will carry the Elizabeth Sword which is being used in place of the Sword of State.
Scotland’s First Minister Humza Yousaf will give a reading during the service, while others attending from the world of politics include Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar and Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton.
The service will feature five new pieces of music commissioned to mark the occasion, including Balmoral Flourishes, by composer Paul Mealor, which will be performed by the State Trumpeters of the Household Cavalry.
The Red Arrows will provide the finale to the day, staging a flypast after the service over the Palace of Holyroodhouse.
