Queen’s state funeral service ends with UK national anthem, piper’s lament
Queen Elizabeth II Funeral Today Live Updates:
British Queen Elizabeth II Funeral Day Live Updates: Britain’s longest-serving monarch Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral has begun at the Westminster Abbey in London. King Charles and other senior British royals followed Queen Elizabeth’s coffin into Westminster Abbey on Monday, joining world leaders and monarchs to bid farewell to a beloved figure who unified the nation through her 70-year reign. In scenes of inimitable pageantry, pall bearers carried her flag-draped casket along the aisle in the country’s first state funeral since 1965, when Winston Churchill was afforded the honour.
President Droupadi Murmu paid her respects to the Queen on behalf of India Saturday, and met with King Charles III. US President Joe Biden and other world leaders have flown into London for the funeral, to which around 500 royals, heads of state and heads of government from around the globe have been invited.
Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral service ends
Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral service on Monday ended with United Kingdom’s national anthem and piper’s lament. The queen’s coffin has left Wesminster Abbey.
Sep 19, 2022 16:55 IST
Britain’s King Charles III’s Card for Queen Elizabeth II
Britain’s King Charles III has written a note for the Queen which was kept on top of her coffin. According to BBC, it reads, “In loving and devoted memory. Charles R”. King Charles walked beside the coffin of the Queen, draped in a Royal Standard and adorned with the Imperial State Crown and the Sovereign’s orb and sceptre as it left the Abbey at the state funeral service for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II. (Image: AFP)
Sep 19, 2022 16:43 IST
Queen Elizabeth’s Beloved Horses Leading Coffin Procession Specially Trained to Hear ‘Sobbing’ Sound
Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin procession to Westminster Abbey on Monday was led by four steeds of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, culminating a decades-long bond between the late monarch and her passion for horses. Canada’s iconic mounted police force played a significant role in the Queen’s funeral as the trained animals: George, Elizabeth, Darby and Sir John, are the latest in a long line of Canadian horses ridden by senior royals during Trooping the Color, the annual parade marking the sovereign’s official birthday. According to the Daily Mail, the horse named ‘Elizabeth’ was given to the Queen as a gift in 2012.
Sep 19, 2022 16:39 IST
Two Minutes’ Silence Held in Memory of Queen Elizabeth II
World leaders joined members of the public in two minutes’ silence in memory of Queen Elizabeth II at her state funeral in London. The funeral of Britain’s longest-serving monarch ended with “God Save the King”, the reworded national anthem after her son Charles’s accession.
Sep 19, 2022 16:32 IST
Big Ben Chimes, Hymns Mark Start of State Funeral for Queen Elizabeth II
The chimes of the Big Ben fell silent and hymns rang out as the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II was carried into Westminster Abbey for the state funeral of Britain’s longest-serving monarch. Her son and heir King Charles III followed the coffin in solemn procession, accompanied by his sons Princes William and Harry and siblings Princess Anne and Princes Andrew and Edward. William’s children, nine-yearold Prince George and seven-yearold Princess Charlotte were among the youngest members of the royal family who walked between their parents, the Prince and Princess of Wales. Britain’s Catherine, Princess of Wales, Princess Charlotte and Prince George arrive for the State Funeral Service of Queen Elizabeth II. (Image: AFP)
Sep 19, 2022 16:29 IST
President Murmu, Foreign Secretary Attend Queen’s State Funeral
President Droupadi Murmu and Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra formed the official Indian delegation at the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey in London. The President and the Foreign Secretary arrived at the Abbey in a procession alongside other Commonwealth heads of state and government, including the President of Tanzania Samia Suluhu Hassan and Singapore President Halimah Yacob. Earlier, the President met with Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her sister, Sheikh Rehana, before joining the 2,000 strong congregation at the Abbey.
Sep 19, 2022 16:25 IST
Britain And The World Say Farewell To Queen Elizabeth II
Queen Elizabeth II will be laid to rest today after a state funeral attended by leaders from around the world and a historic last ceremonial journey through the packed streets of London. Huge crowds gathered in near silence to watch as the queen’s flag-draped coffin, topped with the Imperial State Crown, her orb and sceptre, was carried slowly to a gun carriage from parliament’s Westminster Hall where it had lain in state since Wednesday. To the tune of pipes and drums, the gun carriage — used at every state funeral since Queen Victoria’s in 1901 — was then drawn by 142 junior enlisted sailors in the Royal Navy to Westminster Abbey. (Image: AFP)
Sep 19, 2022 16:22 IST
Queen Elizabeth II’s Funeral Procession
Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-serving monarch in British history, died aged 96 at Balmoral Castle on September 8 after a year of declining health. She was succeeded by her 73-year-old eldest son, King Charles III, who late Sunday said he and his wife, Queen Consort Camilla, had been “deeply touched” by the public’s flood of messages.
Sep 19, 2022 16:15 IST
Queen Elizabeth II Funeral: Choir Sings Anthem of Hope
In the presence of Royal family members and several world leaders, the choir sang “My soul, there is a country” written by Hubert Parry during World War One but based on the words of the 17th Century poet Henry Vaughan. It’s said to have been chosen for the funeral as an anthem of great hope, reports BBC.
Sep 19, 2022 16:07 IST
Archbishop of Canterbury Praises Queen’s Service to UK And Commonwealth
Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby on Monday praised Queen Elizabeth II’s life of duty and service to the UK and Commonwealth at the state funeral for Britain’s longest-serving monarch. “People of loving service are rare in any walk of life. Leaders of loving service are still rarer. But in all cases those who serve will be loved and remembered when those who cling to power and privileges are forgotten,” he was quoted as saying in his funeral sermon.
Sep 19, 2022 16:02 IST
Paris Metro Station Honours Queen Elizabeth II During Funeral
A Paris metro station on the Champs-Elysees has been renamed Elizabeth II for the day as a tribute to the British queen during her funeral. Signs in the George V metro station — named after the queen’s grandfather — were replaced on Monday as a mark of respect for the British sovereign, who will be buried later after a service in London. “We wanted to join in the day of mourning by putting up the sign ‘Elizabeth II 1926-2022’ in the George V station on Line 1,” a spokeswoman for the Paris metro operator RATP told news agency AFP.
Sep 19, 2022 15:55 IST
Queen Elizabeth ‘s Coffin Draped in Royal Standard & Adorned With Imperial State Crown
The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in a Royal Standard and adorned with the Imperial State Crown and the Sovereign’s orb and sceptre today arrived during the State Funeral Service for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, at Westminster Abbey in London. (Image: AFP)
Sep 19, 2022 15:44 IST
Queen’s Great-grandchildren Follow Coffin in Westminster Abbey
Queen Elizabeth’s great-grandchildren George and Charlotte followed the coffin in Westminster Abbey. (Image: AFP)
Sep 19, 2022 15:37 IST
Queen Elizabeth’s Coffin Carried Into Westminster Abbey for State Funeral
Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin arrived at Westminster Abbey on Monday for a grand state funeral attended by 2,000 guests including leaders from around the world, reports news agency AFP. In a tradition dating back to Queen Victoria’s funeral in 1901, the state gun carriage bearing the coffin was hauled to the abbey by Royal Navy sailors, followed in a solemn procession by King Charles III and other senior royals.
Sep 19, 2022 14:57 IST
Westminster Abbey Bell Tolls 96 Times
The first bells for the late Queen began to ring outside Westminster Abbey. In the run-up to the funeral, the bells rang once every minute to commemorate the 96-year-old monarch’s life.
Sep 19, 2022 14:27 IST
In GFX | Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II: Timeline of Key Moments of the Day
The state funeral will be a long affair with the entire ceremony taking more than 12 hours. This is the first time in many decades the UK will host world leaders and royal families from all over the world.
Sep 19, 2022 14:10 IST
Britain and the world say farewell to Queen Elizabeth II
Queen Elizabeth II will be laid to rest on Monday, after a state funeral attended by leaders from around the world and a historic last ceremonial journey through the packed streets of London.
After queueing all night, the final members of the public filed through parliament’s cavernous Westminster Hall to see the queen’s coffin lying in state before the doors closed at 6:30 am (0530 GMT).
Chrissy Heerey, a serving member of the Royal Air Force who joined the marathon queue twice, was the last person through the doors and described the experience as “amazing”.
“When they came to me and said, ‘right, you’re the last person’, I said, really?!” she told AFP, before heading off to join the crowds for the coffin’s procession through central London.
“A long day but very well worth it. It’s nothing compared to what the queen has done for the country.”
The longest-serving monarch in British history died aged 96 at Balmoral, her Scottish Highland retreat, on September 8 after a year of declining health.
She was succeeded by her 73-year-old eldest son, King Charles III, who late Sunday said he and his wife, Queen Consort Camilla, had been “deeply touched” by the public’s flood of messages.
“As we all prepare to say our last farewell, I wanted simply to take this opportunity to say thank you,” he said. (AFP)
Sep 19, 2022 13:16 IST
Crowds jam London for Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral
Huge crowds built in central London overnight and from early morning on Monday to secure a spot to watch the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey.
As dawn broke over the River Thames, a steady stream of well-wishers streamed out of Embankment underground station headed for Parliament Square.
But many were already there, camping in sleeping bags behind the metal barriers along the Whitehall government district, where the funeral procession will pass.
“It’s part of history,” said Bethany Beardmore, 26, an accountant whose brother is a Grenadier Guard and part of the ceremonies.
“Not in my lifetime is there going to be another queen.”
Beardmore arrived at 9:00 pm (2000 GMT) on Sunday but, fuelled by too much sugar and caffeine, found it impossible to sleep in the cold.
“Everyone was chatting,” she said, as sporadic applause from the good-natured crowd broke out when a stream of police and military personnel passed.
Former soldier Jamie Page, 41, served in the Iraq War and got a train from his home in Horsham, south of London, at 5:00 am.
“Sixteen years old, I swore an oath of allegiance to the queen,” he said, his military medals glinting in the weak morning sun.
“She’s been my boss. She means everything. She was like a gift from god.” (AFP)
Sep 19, 2022 12:19 IST
Republican movements catch wind in Caribbean after queen’s death
Black cloth covers the portrait of Queen Elizabeth II hanging in Antigua’s parliament — a sign of the island’s mourning and an unintentional symbol of a possible Caribbean future without the British monarchy.
The queen’s death has put the wind at the back of republican movements in a region once dominated by the British empire, analysts say, as calls continue for the crown to apologize for the slave trade and atone for the sins of colonization.
The idea “has entered mainstream, ‘common-sense’ discourse as a wider spectrum of society engages with the issues and asks themselves what has the monarchy ever done for us?” says Kate Quinn, an associate professor in Caribbean history at University College London.
Republicanism predates the end of the second Elizabethan era, Quinn said, “but her death and the accession of Charles have given further momentum to debate on the issue in the region.”
Antigua and Barbuda became the first to float plans to move toward becoming a republic after the queen’s death, with Prime Minister Gaston Browne telling media he hopes to hold a referendum on the issue within three years.
His counterpart in the Bahamas has signaled similar hopes, though without giving any timeline.
“For me, it is always on the table,” Prime Minister Phillip Davis said in comments reported by the Nassau Guardian newspaper the day after the queen died. “I will have to have a referendum and the Bahamian people will have to say to me, ‘yes’.”
Jamaica, too, is considering “moving on,” as Prime Minister Andrew Holness pointedly told the king’s son Prince William during a disastrous tour of the Caribbean earlier this year.
They are following a path blazed by Barbados, once known as “Little England” but whose ruling Labour Party last year used its majority to approve a constitutional amendment removing the queen as head of state. (AFP)
Sep 19, 2022 11:44 IST
Queen Elizabeth II lying-in-state ends ahead of funeral
The lying-in-state ceremony for Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Hall formally ended and the doors closed to the public ahead of her state funeral on Monday.
Over five days, tens of thousands of people had waited hours in line before filing past her coffin to pay their final respects. The funeral will take place at Westminster Abbey in front of some 2,000 guests. (AFP)
In photos | Scenes inside Westminster Abbey
16:06 (IST)19 SEP 2022 Express Opinion | Queen Elizabeth’s funeral: Why ritual pomp fascinates Indians
by SHREEKANT SAMBRANI
I have avidly watched for long hours the television coverage of events in the United Kingdom immediately after the demise of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8, staying up late at night. I have asked myself what was my compulsion in doing so, as I am not a royalist even remotely. Nor do I have any personal interest in the British royalty.
I had smugly laughed at my Sri Lankan friends who were lapping up the coverage of the Prince Charles-Diana Spencer wedding in 1981 when I was in that island nation. I have not had the slightest interest in watching the award-winning television serial based on the late Queen’s life.
15:51 (IST)19 SEP 2022 Big Ben chimes, hymns mark start of state funeral for Queen Elizabeth II
The chimes of the Big Ben fell silent and hymns rang out as the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II was carried into Westminster Abbey for the state funeral of Britain’s longest-serving monarch on Monday. Her son and heir King Charles III followed the coffin in solemn procession, accompanied by his sons Princes William and Harry and siblings Princess Anne and Princes Andrew and Edward.
William’s children, nine-year-old Prince George and seven-year-old Princess Charlotte were among the youngest members of the royal family who walked between their parents, the Prince and Princess of Wales.
In the congregation of around 2,000 guests made up of world leaders, royalty from the UK and overseas and community leaders, India was represented by President Droupadi Murmu. The funeral service is being led by the Dean of Westminster and will include many personal touches of the late monarch, who was also the head of the Church of England. (PTI)
15:43 (IST)19 SEP 2022Sombre pageantry as funeral begins for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth
King Charles and other senior British royals followed Queen Elizabeth’s coffin into Westminster Abbey on Monday, joining world leaders and monarchs to bid farewell to a beloved figure who unified the nation through her 70-year reign. In scenes of inimitable pageantry, pall bearers carried her flag-draped casket along the aisle in the country’s first state funeral since 1965, when Winston Churchill was afforded the honour.
Tens of thousands of people lined the streets as the queen’s casket made the short journey from Westminster Hall where she had been lying-in-state, pulled along on a gun carriage by 142 sailors with arms linked. A bell tolled and bagpipes skirled. Pin-drop silence fell over London’s Hyde Park nearby as thousands of people, who for hours had picnicked and chatted, went quiet the second the queen’s coffin appeared on screens erected for the occasion.
Shortly before, hundreds of armed personnel in full ceremonial dress had marched past in a historic display of kilts, bearskin hats, scarlet tunics and bands in white gloves. Inside the abbey, lines of scripture were set to music that has been used at every state funeral since the early 18th century. Among those walking behind the casket was her great-grandson and future king, 9-year-old Prince George. (Reuters)
15:29 (IST)19 SEP 2022Queen Elizabeth’s coffin arrives at Westminster Abbey
Procession carrying the Queen Elizabeth’s coffin has arrived at the West Gate of Westminster Abbey. The Abbey was filled with 2,000 mourners, as the coffin entered the building.15:22 (IST)19 SEP 2022President Murmu meets Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina before State Funeral
President Droupadi Murmu on Monday was seen with Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina and her sister Sheikh Rehana before commencement of the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, in London.
