The Crown of Scotland was handed over in a short ceremony at the Castle, which the Duke of Hamilton, the Lord Lyon, King of Arms, the Chief Executive of Historic Scotland and the Governor of the Castle attended. The royal car travelled from Holyrood Palace to the Castle in order to convey the Crown of Scotland from Crown Square via the Mound to the Assembly Hall.

The Presiding Officer presided over speeches by the Lord President, Alex Salmond, David McLetchie and Jim Wallace in Parliament Hall. MSPs and guests for the civic procession attended this ceremony.

The civic procession was flanked by an escort of young people and proceeded from Parliament Square East into the High Street and down the Mound. The order of the procession was: pipe band, civic Scotland, MSPs, Presiding Officer, Deputy Presiding Officers and First Minister.

The procession arrived at the Assembly Hall at 11.00 am. The young people took up position in front of the military streetliners along the road to the Assembly Hall. Civic procession guests were shown to their seats.

Her Majesty the Queen, HRH Prince Philip the Duke of Edinburgh and HRH Prince Charles the Duke of Rothesay left Holyrood Palace in a carriage, escorted by the Household Cavalry. The Royal Marines Band played the national anthem as the Queen left.

There was a 21-gun salute from the Castle. When the carriage arrived at the foot of Ramsay Lane, the Queen was met by the First Minister, the Presiding Officer and the Deputy Presiding Officers.

During a fanfare by James Macmillan specially written for the occasion, the MSPs entered and took their seats. They were followed by the First Minister, the Pursuivant, the Herald, Lord Lyon, King of Arms, the Duke of Hamilton bearing the Crown of Scotland, the Queen, the Presiding Officer, the Duke of Edinburgh, George Reid, Prince Charles the Duke of Rothesay and Patricia Ferguson. Once the Queen was in her place, the Duke of Hamilton placed the Crown on the table.

The Presiding Officer welcomed the Queen and guests to the opening. The Queen made her speech officially opening the Parliament. At the end of it, the Mace, a gift from the Queen, was uncovered by a Herald. Following this, there was a reading by Tom Flemming (The beginning of a new song, by Iain Crichton Smith) and a song by Sheena Wellington (A man’s a man for a’ that, by Robert Burns).

The First Minister thanked the Queen for her gift. This speech was followed by another reading by Victoria Joffe, winner of the Elizabeth Peacock Cup at the finals of the Business and Professional Women UK public speaking competition (How to make a great Scotland, by Amy Linekar, who was one of the winners of the National Year of Reading Schools Competition). Everyone then sang All people that on earth do dwell.

The Duke of Hamilton lifted up the Crown of Scotland and carried it before the Queen. The procession moved out of the Assembly Hall.

The Queen, the royal party, the First Minister, and the Presiding Officer were escorted to a platform in front of the Free Church on the Mound. MSPs and guests exited to the front of the Assembly Hall.

A parade of young people from all 73 constituencies passed in front of the platform and continued down the Mound and along Princes Street. Concorde and the Red Arrows flew past. The platform party spoke to the last few children in the parade.

The young people were carrying coloured banners. They showed two symbols chosen by each constituency which represented social, geographic and economic aspects of their community. The banners were displayed on the slopes of the Castle rocks behind Princes Street Gardens and remained there until midnight.

At 12.30 pm, the royal party returned to Holyrood Palace. The guests had a lunch reception at the Parliament Hall and Signet Library

At 12.45 pm the parade arrived at Kings Stable Road and proceeded into West Princes Street Gardens, where entertainment and a picnic was provided for the young people who had participated in the parade.

This dinner was held in Dynamic Earth, the first time the building was used and was attended by companies and MSPs only. Entertainment was provided by Carol Kidd and the Tartan Amoebas.

A giant bonfire was lit at dusk on Calton Hill. An open-air barbecue and music by Salsa Celtica was provided. This event lasted from dusk until first light.

A rock concert in West Princes Street Gardens which featured the first Edinburgh performance of Garbage. This was Garbage’s first performance in Edinburgh, the home of their lead singer, Shirley Manson. They were supported by Idlewild.

An open air concert of classical music in East Princes Street Gardens. It featured the Scottish National Orchestra, and leading soloists from Scottish Opera (Donald Maxwell and Catriona Smith) conducted by the Scottish composer James Macmillan (orchestra) and Richard Armstrong (operatic). The last song in the concert was Auld Lang Syne – the audience and the crowd on Princes Street and the Mound joined in with this.

A ceilidh in the Assembly Rooms, George Street.

The Crown of Scotland was used ceremonially for the first time since 1953 when it featured in the Scottish Parliament’s opening ceremony.

The ‘Honours of Scotland’ (Scottish Crown Jewels) were first used in the coronation of Mary Queen of Scots in 1543 and are the oldest sovereign regalia in the British Isles, and among the oldest in Europe.

The mace which Her Majesty the Queen presented to the Parliament during the Opening Ceremony is a unique and beautiful piece of craftsmanship. At a meeting in December 1998 the Opening Ceremony Working Group welcomed a suggestion that the Queen present a gift to the Parliament as part of the formal ceremony. Palace representatives favoured a gift that was of a practical rather than of a decorative nature. A mace is widely accepted as a symbol of authority and it was therefore agreed that the presentation by the Queen of a mace to the Parliament would serve to symbolise the historic transfer of legislative powers in respect of devolved matters from Westminster to the Scottish Parliament.

With less than six months to go before the opening ceremony time was of the essence. An expert panel chaired by the Director of the Holyrood Project Team and comprising silversmithing and jewellery experts together with members of the Holyrood Building Design Team drew up a specification. Ten silversmiths were invited to submit concept designs for a mace which would be contemporary and distinctive to Scotland, reflect the modern working practices envisaged for the new Parliament and be sympathetic with the architecture, interior and fabric of the new Parliament building at Holyrood.

Of the ten silversmiths, eight submitted concept designs. Two reluctantly declined to take part because existing commitments would not have given them the opportunity to design and create a piece worthy of the occasion within the very tight time constraints which had to be imposed. In selecting a single design from the eight submitted entries the expert panel faced a formidable task. All of the entries were of a very high standard and will be archived as part of the history of building the Scottish Parliament. Finally, the Panel selected the design submitted by Michael Lloyd, a silversmith from south west Scotland. Michael Lloyd, who is highly respected in Scotland’s renowned silversmithing tradition, creates silverware which reflects his love of nature and appreciation of creativity. His work is currently in the National Collection and in many private collections and may be seen in museums across the United Kingdom such as the Royal Scottish Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum. He is a Freeman of the Goldsmith’s Company.

The panel’s decision was endorsed by the then Secretary of State, Donald Dewar and Enric Miralles. The Queen approved the design and Michael Lloyd set to work. Michael Lloyd perceives the Mace as a spiritual wand. The words "Wisdom, Justice, Compassion, Integrity", aspirations which Michael believes the Scottish people would ask of all MSPs, are woven into four thistles which ornate the head of the Mace. The Mace is constructed of Scottish silver and the words "There shall be a Scottish Parliament – Scotland Act 1998" are engraved at the head. A gold ring embedded in the Mace is crafted from gold extracted from Scottish rivers and gifted by Scottish gold panners. This is symbolic of a wedding ring celebrating the marriage of the Parliament, the land and the people.

During sessions of the Parliament the Mace will rest on a plinth on the Presiding Officer’s desk to signify the authority vested in the Parliament. In the longer term it is intended that, when the Parliament is not in session, the Mace will be placed in a secure glass cabinet in the well of the debating chamber, immediately in front of the clerks’ console. Arrangements for obtaining a glass display case are in hand. When the Mace is in situ we will all have the opportunity to see this beautiful piece of historic silverware at close range.