A deathly silence fell over Balmoral as members of the Royal Family walked to the estate after praying for the Queen.
Royals including Prince Edward and Sophie, Countess of Wessex, as well as their daughter Lady Louise, walked from Crathie Kirk to the entrance of Balmoral at around 2.30, and read some of the tributes left to the Queen following her death on Thursday. They were joined by the Princess Royal, her husband Commander Tim Lawrence, her daughter Zara Tindall and her husband Mike.
Prince Andrew, who has withdrawn from the public eye following allegations about the nature of his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, was among the royals who visited the church to pray, alongside his children Eugenie and Beatrice.
He waved to waiting members of the media from the driver’s seat of a Range Rover as it pulled out of the estate and drove to Crathie Kirk - and made a rare public appearance as he walked from the church to the masses of tributes left at the gates.
After spending a few minutes reading some of the messages, the family then assembled at the open gate to Balmoral and turned to wave to the waiting public, who had watched in awestruck silence.
People waved back - before bursting into spontaneous applause as the royals turned and walked into the estate, the gates closing behind them.
Among the cards and messages left for the family, drawings from children of the Queen and Paddington Bear outside a castle.
Andrew Crampton, 63, and his wife Donna, 57, spoke briefly with Prince Edward as he walked up the path to Balmoral.
He asked them if they had “come far” - and was surprised to hear them say they had driven up from Liverpool on Saturday morning.
Donna, who met the Queen in Liverpool around 20 years ago, said: “Edward asked us where we had come from - and when we said Liverpool he replied, ‘That’s a long way’.
“It was amazing - we felt so privileged to be there while the Queen is about to leave Balmoral for the last time.
“It was important for me and Andy to come here to Scotland, rather than go to London, to be with her.
“I really enjoyed seeing Sophie - I think she’s so lovely. And Eugenie took my hand, she was sobbing. We were very lucky to see them, and share in their grief.”
The couple and others around them realised they were about to be in the presence of royalty when a security guard told the crowd to be prepared for their arrival - and instructed them not to try to hand the royals flowers.
Andrew added: “We were watching documentaries on the TV last night and we thought it would be right to come and pay our respects.”
The family had earlier left the estate to travel to the nearby church to hold private prayers for the Queen following her death at 96.
Scores of mourners were whisked away from the tributes and moved behind a set of barriers at around 1.30pm ahead of the procession of Range Rovers leaving the estate.
King Charles III remains in London having been proclaimed the new monarch in a ceremony broadcast on TV on Saturday morning.
During the ceremony he approved an order allowing the Queen's upcoming funeral to be a bank holiday in the United Kingdom.
The King was joined by his wife Camilla, who is now Queen Consort, and his son and heir Prince William, who is now the Prince of Wales and wife Kate Princess of Wales.
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