Palace reveals details of Queen’s state funeral
LONDON: Two minutes of silence will be observed on Monday across the United Kingdom at the end of Queen Elizabeth II's state funeral at Westminster Abbey, giving British public across the nation a chance to pay their respects to the late monarch.
Buckingham Palace released more details on Thursday about the state funeral of the queen, who died on September 8 at 96, and her private interment later on Monday. Edward William Fitzalan-Howard, the official in charge of arrangements, said the funeral and events over coming days are intended to “unite people across the globe and resonate with people of all faiths, whilst fulfilling her majesty and her family's wishes to pay a fitting tribute to an extraordinary reign.”
Tens of thousands were standing in a line on Thursday that snaked for more than four miles along the River Thames in London, waiting to file in silence past her coffin.
After the state funeral on Monday, attended by 2,000 guests, including US President Joe Biden and other visiting heads of state, Elizabeth's
coffin will be carried through the historic heart of London, from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch near Buckingham Palace on a horse-drawn gun carriage with Charles and other royals walking behind.
Amid pomp and pageantry, the coffin will travel along virtually the same route, including down the flag-lined Mall to the one it passed on Wednesday in front of hushed throngs of mourners when it was taken from the palace to the Houses of Parliament.
The coffin will then be driven in the state hearse to Windsor for a committal
service at St. George's Chapel near Windsor Castle, attended by 800 people, including members of the queen's household and Windsor estate staff.
At the end of the service, the coffin will be lowered into the Royal Vault. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, will pronounce the blessing and the congregation will sing “God Save The King.” Members of the royal family will then hold a private burial service at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, where the queen will be interred with her late husband, Prince Philip.