MILITARY HONOURS
Armed Forces members pay their respects
PRINCE Philip’s funeral featured over 700 members of the navy, army and airforce, including many who knew him personally.
The ceremony and procession had been planned with military precision by Philip himself to include the firing of cannons, the toll of bells and a rendition of The Last Post.
In the Quadrangle at Windsor Castle and lining the procession route were representatives from all wings of the Armed Forces.
Buglers, drummers, trumpeters and a Royal Navy Piping Party provided a moving soundtrack to the day.
The Queen’s Company, 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, carried the Duke’s coffin, draped in his personal standard and bearing his sword and naval cap.
Inside St George’s Chapel, his military awards including RAF wings, field marshal’s baton and Royal Victorian Order Collar, sparkled on the altar.
DEVOTION
It was an apt tribute to the Duke who had numerous military roles over many decades, including Admiral of the Sea Cadet Corps, Marshal of the Royal Airforce, Colonel-in-Chief of the British Army Cadet Force and Lord High Admiral of the Navy.
The Grenadier Guards band played as the cortege approached the Horseshoe Cloister and the West Steps of St George’s Chapel were lined by Household Cavalrymen.
A Royal Navy Piping Party of 1 Chief Petty Officer and 5 Ratings were in position on the South Side of the West Steps to the chapel.
Victorian hymn Eternal Father, Strong To Save, which is linked to the Navy, was sung by a choir, restricted by Covid rules to just four members.
In the nave of the chapel, the Last Post was sounded by buglers from the Royal Marines, for whom Philip served as Captain General for six decades
A few moments later the Reveille was played by the State Trumpeters of the Household Cavalry.
At the end of the service the buglers sounded Action Stations.
The short piece, picked by the Duke, is played on a warship to signal all hands should go to battle stations and is sometimes used at naval funerals.
At the interment of the coffin, the Pipe Major of the Royal Regiment of Scotland played a lament.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: “On behalf of the Armed Forces, it has been an honour for us to have served
He was colourful and outspoken & held the family together... it’s the end of an era and we will miss him ARTIST KAYA MAR ON WHY HE FELT MOVED TO ATTEND THE PROCESSION
alongside The Duke of Edinburgh. I am proud on this day they have been able to accompany him to his place of rest and display to the nation the
devotion we all held for him.”
Commonwealth defence advisers from Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Trinidad and Tobago were also in attendance in the Horseshoe Cloister.
For decades, the people of Windsor
had delighted in seeing Prince Philip riding his carriages in the town.
Yesterday, they gathered clutching memorial flowers. While most heeded official advice to watch on TV, several
hundred well-wishers stood on the streets outside Windsor Castle.
At 3pm they fell silent as cannons were fired and the nation paused for a minute of silence in his memory.
A smattering of applause broke out following the poignant moment, which many filmed on their phones.
Among the crowds was tearful Scott Walker, dressed in funeral attire.
The 52-year-old Londoner said: “I had to come here today to feel his spirit and be close to him.”
Adrian Smythe, 47, also brought his
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children Sarah, 11, and Reuben, eight, 100 miles from Portishead, Somerset.
He said: “I’m an immigrant from South Africa so I literally have the Queen and Prince Philip to thank for the fact I can be here.”
Artist Kaya Mar brought a portrait of the duke he painted last Friday.
“He was like the glue that held the royal family together,” the 64-year-old, from London, said. “Colourful, outspoken – it is the end of an era and we will miss him very much.”
And retired travel boss Geoff Try, 89, recalled a time he met the Duke at a dinner after years of charity work.
He said: “A staff member introduced me and said, ‘You must know Geoff, he’s lived here all his life’, and the Duke said, ‘I don’t know every bloody person in Windsor’.
“We laugh about it as it’s the sort of thing you would expect him to say.”
His wife Fiona, 84, recalled how Philip and the Queen used to do their Christmas shopping in the town.
“It was like they were ordinary residents of Windsor,” she said. “They used to ride out on the Long Walk and always smiled and said hello”.
Among those to bring flowers was Alison Holmes, 61, who travelled from Basildon, Essex, with her family.
She said: “Prince Philip struck me as a family man. It feels a massive loss.”
At one point a streaker broke through security guards on the streets but was quickly detained.
It did little to detract from the man crowds had came to remember.