(CNN)Members of the British royal family joined people from across the country on Thursday evening to applaud nurses, doctors and carers fighting the coronavirus.
Clapping could be heard on streets up and down the country as people stepped out onto their balconies and doorsteps or hung out of windows, in a show of collective gratitude for the work of the National Health Service (NHS) in tackling the pandemic.
In some areas, people set off fireworks, beeped car horns and banged pots and pans as the clock turned to 8 p.m.
Princess Charlotte, Prince George and Prince Louis -- the children of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge -- took part in the applause.
Kensington Palace released a video on Instagram showing the children applauding.
"To all the doctors, nurses, carers, GPs, pharmacists, volunteers and other NHS staff working tirelessly to help those affected by #COVID19: thank you," the post said.
The heir to the British throne, Prince Charles, who has tested positive for coronavirus and is self-isolating, also joined in the applause with his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall. In a video uploaded to the Clarence House Instagram account the couple can be seen clapping from separate rooms.
On social media, hundreds of videos were shared from around the United Kingdom with the hashtags #ClapForTheNHS and #ClapForCarers.
In a video filmed in London and posted on Twitter, people can be heard cheering, whistling and banging in support.
A Tweet from the NHS that has been liked more than 365,000 times read simply: "That was emotional."
Worldwide, people have been coming together to show their gratitude to hospital workers.
On Sunday, people in India leaned out of windows to applaud health care workers, and earlier this month people in Spain and Italy clapped and sang in a show of community.
There have so far been 14,579 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the United Kingdom, including the Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Health Secretary Matt Hancock, who revealed they had tested positive for the disease on Friday. There have been 759 deaths.
Worldwide, there have been more than 550,000 confirmed coronavirus cases and over 25,000 deaths, according to the latest figures from Johns Hopkins University.
