THE FINAL FAREWELLS

Ahead of the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral, Marion McMullen looks back at how Britain has mourned over the years

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Prince Philip’s ceremonial royal funeral in the gothic 15thcentury St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, on Saturday has to meet Covid restrictions with only 30 people attending. Originally 800 would have been due to gather to pay their respects to the longest-serving consort in history.

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When the Queen Mother died aged 101 in 2002, Queen Elizabeth spoke to the nation on the eve of her funeral to thank the country for their support and the “love and honour” shown to her mother. She said: “I count myself fortunate that my mother was blessed with a long and happy life. She had an infectious zest for living and this remained with her until the very end.”

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The funeral of 36-yearold Princess Diana in 1997 was watched by 2.5 billion people. Some 2,000 people attended the funeral at Westminster Abbey including Sir Elton John, Sting, George Michael, Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks. Diana was laid to rest on an island at her ancestral home, Althorp House, in Northamptonshire.

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Queen Victoria went into mourning for the rest of her life following the death of her beloved husband Prince Albert in 1861 at the age of 42. She went on to live until she was 81 and left precise instructions for her own funeral in 1901. Her son King Edward VII led the funeral procession, riding a horse.

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At 9.45am on January 30, 1965, Big Ben rang out as Sir Winston Churchill’s coffin left Westminster Hall. A million mourners lined the streets for the 90-year-old’s state funeral, which was attended by 3,000 guests, from 111 nations, including five monarchs.

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King Richard III, right, was finally given a state funeral and reinterment in 2015 after his remains were found under a car park in Leicester. The 32-year-old was the last British king to die in battle on home soil. The ceremony at Leicester Cathedral lasted six days and took place nearly 530 years after the monarch was killed on August 22, 1485, at the Battle Of Bosworth Field.

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Admiral Horatio Nelson’s remains were placed in a barrel of brandy when he died aboard his ship the HMS Victory after being shot by a French sniper during the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. The alcohol preserved his body so that he could be returned home to Britain for a state funeral. His coffin was made from the mast of French ship L’Orient, which Nelson, right, defeated at the Battle of the Nile.

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British scientist, astronomer and mathematician Sir Isaac Newton was give a state funeral in 1727 after he passed away in his sleep at the age of 84. His body lay in state before his burial at Westminster Abbey and the Latin inscription on his memorial stone translates as “Here lies that which was mortal of Isaac Newton”.

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The Duke of Wellington, below, passed away at the age of 93 in 1852 and 200,000 came to pay their respects when he lay in state at Chelsea Hospital, including Queen Victoria. The war hero, who defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo, was buried in St Paul’s Cathedral.

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The state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II’s father, King George VI, took place in 1952. He was 56. More than 300,000 people paid their respects as his coffin lay in state at Westminster Hall. It was later taken by train to Windsor for the funeral at St George’s Chapel and monarchs from around the world attended the service.