King Charles used three heartbreaking words in response to the news that his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, had died.

With the Queen in the final days of her life, the then-Prince Charles rushed to Balmoral, Scotland, to be with her.

He hopped aboard a helicopter at 9.30am on the morning of the 8th September 2022, travelling from Ayrshire where he had been conducting royal duties.

It is understood that Charles read his briefing papers for the last time under the title of prince. He is then said to have made four phone calls to Princes William, Andrew, Edward and Harry.

He told them to leave what they were doing and travel to Scotland.

The King landed at 10:30am in Birkhall, where he and Camilla had a retreat, before borrowing a staff member’s Land Rover and driving to Balmoral.

He spent an hour by the Queen’s bedside, before taking some time away to clear his head and process what was going on.

Royal journalist Robert Hardman has written in his new book Charles III: New King, New Court, The Inside Story that sadly Charles was not with the Queen when she died.

He is reported to have walked the grounds of Birkhall, gathering mushrooms. Princess Anne and the Queen’s personal assistant Angela Kelly stayed by her bedside. Reverend Kenneth MacKenzie read the bible to her.

At around 3pm, Dr Douglas Glass was scrambled to the Queen’s side and Princess Anne contacted Charles and told him to come back.

According to author Hardman, when Dr Glass arrived at 3.25pm, the Queen had already stopped breathing. As Charles drove back to Balmoral, Dr Glass confirmed that the Queen had passed away.

The Dr agreed to a time of death of 3.10pm with Sir Edward Young. The private secretary then moved to contact the new King.

When the call reached him, he pulled over. The author wrote that King Charles received the news with a three-word message: “After being called ‘Your Majesty’ for the first time, Charles simply said, ‘We’re nearly there’ and then continued up to the castle.”