The Ceremony of the Keys is held in Holyrood Palace, Edinburgh, at the start of the British monarch's week-long residence there in July. Soon after the monarch's arrival, in the forecourt of the Palace, the King or Queen is symbolically offered the keys to the city of Edinburgh by the Lord Provost:We, the Lord Provost and the members of the City of Edinburgh Council, welcome Your Majesty to the capital city of your Ancient and Hereditary Kingdom of Scotland and offer for your gracious acceptance the Keys of Your Majesty's good City of Edinburgh.