Queen's funeral: A "fitting tribute to an extraordinary reign"

2,000 people will gather inside Westminster Abbey for Her Majesty's funeral

Author: Ramla JeylaniPublished 15th Sep 2022
Last updated 15th Sep 2022

The state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II will “unite people across the globe and resonate with people of all faiths” and pay a “fitting tribute to an extraordinary reign”, according to the man organising the occasion - The Earl Marshal, Duke of Norfolk.

More details have been released about the funeral, which will take place on Monday for the final farewell to the nation's longest-reigning monarch.

Westminster Abbey in London will host 2,000 people for the funeral, including world leaders and foreign royals.

They will gather at the Royal Hospital Chelsea and "travel under collective arrangements" to the abbey, the Earl Marshal said.

Some 800 people, including members of the Queen's Household and Windsor estate staff, will attend the committal service afterwards at 4pm in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle.

On Monday morning, the doors of Westminster Abbey will open at 8am as the congregation begins to take its seats, three hours before the service begins at 11am.

The King will follow the coffin ahead of the funeral

The King will once again lead his family in marching behind the Queen's coffin when it is moved, at 10.44am on Monday, from Westminster Hall, where it has been lying in state, to Westminster Abbey for the Queen's funeral service.

He will walk with Anne, Andrew and Edward, and behind the quartet will be the Queen's grandsons Peter Phillips, the Duke of Sussex and the Prince of Wales.

The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard with the Imperial State Crown placed on top, is carried on a horse-drawn gun carriage of the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery, during the ceremonial procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall

They will be followed by the late monarch's son-in-law Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, the Queen's cousin the Duke of Gloucester, and her nephew the Earl of Snowdon.

Two-minute silence to end the funeral

Moving elements of the funeral will include the sounding of the Last Post at 11.55am as the service nears its end, followed by a two-minute national silence which will be observed by the abbey congregation and by millions across the UK.

The Reveille and then the National Anthem will then take place, and finally a Lament played by the Queen's Piper which will bring the service to a close at noon.

After the funeral, the King and members of the royal family will walk behind the Queen's coffin to Wellington Arch when it leaves Westminster Abbey, before it is driven to Windsor on the state hearse.

It will move from central London to Windsor, on a route that has not been disclosed by the Palace, but the hearse will travel down the famous Long Walk to the castle.

In the quadrangle, it will be joined by the King and members of the royal family who will follow behind on foot as the Queen's coffin approaches the gothic chapel.

Her Majesty will be laid to rest with Her late husband

The Queen will be laid to rest with Her late husband Prince Phillip, in King George VI's Memorial Chapel in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, in a private service at 7.30pm on the day.

The burial service conducted by the Dean of Windsor and attended by the King and royals will remain entirely private, as a "deeply personal family occasion".

The King, the Princess Royal, the Duke of York and the Earl of Wessex will mount a 15-minute vigil around the Queen's coffin as it lies in state at 7.30pm on Friday.

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