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Edinburgh Live
Edinburgh Live
National
Catherine Wylie, PA & Sophie Buchan

Exact time today Edinburgh Castle will stage 96-gun salute for Queen Elizabeth II

A period of national mourning has begun following the death of Queen Elizabeth II at age 96.

In order to pay tribute to the Monarch, gun salutes will be fired around the UK and overseas with Edinburgh Castle to be a part of the tributes.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said the Death Gun Salute will be fired at 1pm on Friday in London, around the UK and at saluting stations around the world.

READ MORE: Paddington Bear's heartfelt tribute to Queen Elizabeth II touches hearts of fans

As well as gun salutes taking place in the capital, other locations including Cardiff Castle, Hillsborough Castle, York, Portsmouth and Gibraltar will also be showing their respects.

One round will be fired every 10 seconds, with 96 rounds representing one round for every year of the Queen’s life.

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Gun salutes are customarily fired, both on land and at sea, as a sign of respect or welcome with many of them also used as a way to mark a special occasion.

The salutes occur on royal anniversaries including Accession Day, the Queen’s birthday, Coronation Day, the Queen’s official birthday, the state opening of Parliament, royal births and when a visiting head of state meets the Queen in London, Windsor or Edinburgh.

The MoD said the tradition of gun salutes routinely being fired throughout the country to mark significant national events dates back centuries, and there are historical records of salutes taking place as early as the 14th century when guns and ammunition began to be adopted widely.

Similar gun salutes were fired to mark the death of Queen Victoria in 1901 and Winston Churchill in 1965.

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