Icon of an era, Elizabeth II, who died after a 70-year reign, was given a final farewell this Monday at an imposing state funeral, attended by rulers from around the world, before being buried in a private ceremony in Windsor.
During his sermon at Westminster Abbey, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, spiritual leader of the Anglican Church, praised the Queen’s life, which had been dedicated to her people for seven decades.
“People who love to serve are rare in all walks of life. Leaders who love to serve are even rarer. But in all cases, those who serve will be loved and remembered, while those who cling to power and privilege are forgotten. ” said Welby.
The Westminster Abbey Choir and the Royal Chapel Choir sang their chants to the nearly 2,000 participants, including hundreds of the world’s rulers and monarchs, from US President Joe Biden to Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro, to Spain’s King Felipe VI to the Emperor of Japan, Naruhito.
In the final part of the ceremony, the entire country observed two minutes of silence from the streets to the parks, including the pubs, where many watched the ceremony on television.
The state funeral concluded with the national anthem, “God save the King”, sung in honor of the new monarch Charles III.
Then the king followed on foot, with the brothers Anne, Andrew and Edward, next to the children William and Harry, the exit of the coffin, covered with the flag of the monarchy, the imperial crown, the scepter and the orb.
The coffin was transported in a Royal Navy carriage which, to the sound of the funeral marches of Beethoven, Mendelssohn and Chopin, was accompanied by soldiers to Wellington Arch, in Hyde Park Corner.
The monarch’s great-grandchildren, 9-year-old Prince George, second in line, and his sister Charlotte, 7, followed the procession in the first of several official cars, along with their mother Catherine and the new queen consort, Camila.
The third son of the Princes of Wales, Louis, 4, did not attend the ceremony.
crowd on the street
On the eve of the funeral, Buckingham Palace released a never-before-seen photo of Elizabeth II, very smiling, taken for the “Platinum Jubilee” in June.
Elizabeth II died on September 8 at the age of 96 at her Scottish home in Balmoral.
The queen’s health was delicate a year ago, but the monarch’s death, with a presence that seemed eternal, caused great commotion in the country and the world.
The UK honored her with 10 days of national mourning, processions and processions. The emotions of the population made the protests of the Republican minority almost imperceptible.
Her eldest son, 73 years old, succeeded her as King Charles III. Once one of the least esteemed members of the British royal family, his popularity has skyrocketed in recent days.
Westminster Abbey didn’t have enough room for the crowd of Britons who wanted to accompany the Queen to the end.
Thousands of people have been waiting since the early morning hours on the Mall, the famous avenue leading to Buckingham Palace, to follow the procession after the state funeral.
“It’s an emotion that cannot be described looking at the Queen’s coffin,” Maryann Douglas, a 77-year-old retired nurse, told AFP. “It was better than I expected. I had tears and chills,” he said.
Meeting with parents and husband
Symbolizing an era of great change, Elizabeth II took the throne in 1952, in a United Kingdom still shaken by the post-war, and died in 2022, in the post-pandemic and Brexit.
She has met 15 prime ministers, from Winston Churchill to today’s Liz Truss, as well as historical figures including Soviet Nikita Khrushchev, Mother Teresa of Calcutta and South African Nelson Mandela.
In Windsor, the coffin is sent to St. George. Known as the scene of the last royal weddings, this 15th-century church will once again host a religious ceremony with 800 guests, including staff who worked for the Queen.
There the symbols of the monarchy are taken out of the coffin and placed on an altar. The highest official in the Royal Household, Lord Chamberlain, will break his “command post” and place it on the coffin, symbolizing the end of Elizabeth II’s reign.
Then, in a final private ceremony, reserved for the next of kin, the Queen is buried in the “Memorial George VI”, where her parents and the ashes of her sister Margaret were buried.
Her husband Prince Philip’s coffin is buried next to the Queen.
Source: DN
