Global Giants Gather to Honour Queen Elizabeth at Westminster
Hundreds of world leaders and royals from Europe to Lesotho and Japan are set to attend Queen Elizabeth’s funeral at Westminster Abbey this Monday. Dignitaries including US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, Japanese Emperor Naruhito, and Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan paid their respects during the final day of the Queen’s lying-in-state.
Biden hailed her as “decent, honourable, and committed to service.” He added: “You were lucky to have her for 70 years. We were all.”
Massive Crowds Brave 25-Hour Queues to See the Queen
Hundreds of thousands queued for hours to pass the oak coffin, draped in the royal standard and topped with the Imperial Crown, orb, and sceptre. Early on Saturday, wait times hit a staggering 25 hours before the queue was closed to new arrivals on Sunday.
King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla expressed they were “deeply touched” by the global flood of condolence messages. The nation observed a minute’s silence on Sunday in tribute.
Epic Funeral Procession to Westminster Abbey
The Queen’s coffin will be pulled on a gun carriage by 142 Royal Navy sailors to Westminster Abbey just before 11 a.m. Monday, ending ten days of national mourning. Around 200 pipers and drummers will lead the procession.
King Charles will be followed by his siblings, Princes William and Harry, and other royal family members. Monday has been declared a public holiday, with hundreds of thousands expected to line the procession route.
Historic Rituals and Worldwide Broadcast
The Abbey’s tenor bell, used for nearly 1,000 years in royal ceremonies, will ring 96 times, marking every year of the Queen’s life. The Dean of Westminster, David Hoyle, will say: “Here, where Queen Elizabeth was married and crowned, we gather from across the country, the Commonwealth, and the world to mourn our loss, to remember her long life of selfless service.”
The funeral will be the first ever televised, watched in parks and public spaces across the UK and over 200 countries worldwide. Attendees will include top military and civilian gallantry medal holders, charity reps supported by the Queen, and heroes of the COVID-19 fight.
After the service, the coffin will pass Buckingham Palace en route to the Wellington Arch at Hyde Park Corner. The monarch and royal family will follow on foot. From there, the coffin will be driven west to Windsor Castle for burial in the royal vault, with the Sovereign’s Piper playing a haunting lament as the music fades.
