Icon of an era, Isabel IIdeceased after 70 years of historic reign, received this Monday the last goodbye in an imposing state funeral at Westminster Abbey in the presence of leaders from around the world, before being buried privately in Windsor.
In his sermon, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, spiritual leader of the Anglican Church, praised the life of the reinadedicated for seven decades to its people.
“People who love to serve are rare in any walk of life. Leaders who love to serve are rarer still. But in all cases, those who serve will be loved and remembered, while those who cling to power and privilege are forgotten,” Welby said.
The Westminster Abbey Choir and the Royal Chapel Choir they made the nearly 2,000 attendees vibrate with their songss, including some 500 leaders and monarchs of the world, from US President Joe Biden to Brazilian Jair Bolsonaro, and from the kings of Spain – Felipe and Letizia and the emeritus Juan Carlos and Sofía – to Emperor Naruhito of Japan.
A thrilling fanfare from the trumpeters of the cavalry of the royal house gave way to two minutes of silence, observed in all corners of the country, from the streets to the parks or the bars where many followed the ceremony on television.
The service ended with the national anthem, “God save the King”, sung in honor of the new monarch Carlos III.
This followed later, accompanied by his brothers and sons, the departure of the coffin from the Abbey, carried by eight bearers and covered with the royal standard, the imperial crown, the scepter and the orb, symbols of the reina.
The coffin was loaded onto a Royal Navy car which, pulled by dozens of sailors and accompanied by soldiers from three regiments close to the monarch, undertook a long procession through the center of London to Wellington’s Arch at Hyde Park Corner.
The monarch’s great-grandchildren, Prince George, 9 years old, second in line, and his sister Charlotte, 7 years old, followed the procession in an official car along with their mother Catherine, Princess of Wales, and Camilla, the new reina consort.
Later, the remains of Isabel II They had to be transferred by hearse to Windsor, a town about 40 km west of the capital where the famous castle is located, which will become the final resting place of the reina.
Crowds in the streets to bid farewell to Elizabeth II
On the eve of the funeral, Buckingham Palace released a rare photo of Elizabeth II, taken for her “platinum jubilee” in June, showing her dressed in pale blue and sporting a beaming smile.
Elizabeth II died on September 8 at the age of 96, when she spent the summer at her Scottish residence in Balmoral.
His health had not stopped deteriorating for a year, but the disappearance of a monarch whose presence seemed almost eternal shocked the country and the world.
The United Kingdom honored her with 10 days of national mourning, parades and processions, and massive popular emotion that made the protests of a minority of Republicans almost imperceptible.
Her eldest son, 73, succeeded her as Carlos III. Until now one of the least appreciated members of the British royal family, his popularity has risen in recent days.
Westminster Abbey could not accommodate the crowds of Britons eager to accompany their reina until the end.
Early in the morning, thousands of people were already waiting on the Mall, the famous avenue that leads to Buckingham Palace, some with British flags, to see the procession pass after the state funeral.
“We always said that if the reina was dying, we would come to his state funeral. We already came to the weddings [reales]to the Jubilee [de Platino en junio]. We look forward to seeing the hearse,” said Liz, a 69-year-old woman who arrived with her friend Jane at 5:30 a.m.
Isabel II, reunited with her parents and her husband
Symbol of an era of great changes, Elizabeth II came to the throne in 1952, in a United Kingdom still mired in the post-world war, and left in 2022 from the post-pandemic and Brexit.
He not only met 15 British Prime Ministers, from Winston Churchill to the current Liz Truss, but also historical figures such as the Soviet Nikita Khrushchev, Mother Teresa of Calcutta or the South African Nelson Mandela. Likewise, artists such as Charlie Chaplin, Michael Jackson or Lady Gaga.
At Windsor, the coffin will be carried to St George’s Chapel along the great avenue that runs through the castle grounds. In this 15th-century church, known for having been the scene of the last royal weddings, another religious service will be held with 800 guests, including employees of the late reina.
There, the crown, orb, and scepter will be removed from the coffin and placed on the altar. The highest-ranking official of the royal house, the Lord Chamberlain, will break his “rule of command” and place it over the coffin, symbolizing the end of Elizabeth II’s reign.
Later, in a last private ceremony, reserved for the closest relatives, the reina She will be buried in the “George VI Memorial”, an annex where her parents and the ashes of her sister Margarita already rest.
The remains of her husband, Prince Philip, will be buried next to her, moving them from the royal crypt where they have been since his death in April 2021 at almost 100 years old.