A PARTY being hosted by the King in Edinburgh has been disrupted by a huge anti-monarchy protest.
Campaign group Republic staged the demonstration outside Holyroodhouse Palace, the King's official residence in Scotland, in the capital on Tuesday afternoon.
Several members of the group held up a sign reading "Not my King" on a hill which overlooked the palace while the King and Queen were hosting a garden party.
A few moments later, a military band could then be heard performing Abba's Dancing Queen.
The demonstration comes after Republic campaigners gathered to protest outside Holyroodhouse Palace earlier on Tuesday as the King and Queen arrived.
The pair are in Scotland until Friday, where they will carry out a series of engagements for "Royal Week", which is when the monarch traditionally spends a week in Scotland every year.
Protesters were seen holding several signs and chanting "not my King" and "down with the crown", with several cars passing by also sounding their horns in support.
The garden party was attended by hundreds of people, who could be seen flocking to the palace from several hours before proceedings began shortly before 4pm.
Campaigners said they believed the sign would be in sight of those attending the party.
Commenting, Republic said that "Not my King" banners "continue to haunt Charles wherever he goes".
Graham Smith, CEO of Republic said: "I'm proud of our campaigners and activists who get out there and make sure the message is heard loud and clear. We are not a nation of royalists.
"The monarchy is undemocratic, unprincipled and falls well short of the standards we should expect from national institutions."
Smith went on to say that "despite the claims of the royals", the monarchy costs "more than half a billion pounds a year".
"That went up by £45 million in April and last week we learned the Government in Westminster will spend another £45m on a memorial to the Queen," he continued.
"All this extravagance for one family while people with disabilities are facing cuts to their support that will likely push tens of thousands into poverty."
Smith added: "Support for the monarchy is historically lower in Scotland than elsewhere in the UK. But support across the UK is well down on previous years, with a third now wanting an elected head of state."
Polling from Savanta, which was commissioned by Republic earlier this year, showed support for the monarchy falling below 50% for the first time.
That poll found that in Scotland, 41% supported the monarchy, 41% believed there should be an elected head of state and 18% said they "don't know".
