Confederate flag

The divisive Confederate flag came down Friday at South Carolina's legislature, drawing a line under a furor rekindled last month by the murder of nine black churchgoers by a young white supremacist.

Thousands gathered at the State House in Columbia and cheered the removal of the Civil War saltire, regarded by many as a bitter symbol of racism and slavery that has no place in modern America.

The lowering was conducted by a South Carolina state police honor guard, with the "Stars and Bars" destined to be put on display at the nearby Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum.