TEARS OF A QUEEN
Queen sat lost in grief as she said farewell to her husband of 73 years
FORLORN and lost in grief, Queen Elizabeth sat stoic but isolated in the empty quire of St George’s Chapel yesterday as she said her personal farewell to the man who was her ‘strength and stay’ through 73 years of marriage.
Social distancing rules added a solitude to an already sorrowful day, with just 30 mourners permitted to witness Prince Philip’s funeral.
As the Queen reflected on her devoted consort, the Dean of Windsor, conducting the service, recalled his ‘unwavering loyalty to our Queen, his service to his nation, his courage, fortitude and faith’.
The mourners all wore masks during the service and were seated in their households, in line with coronavirus regulations, with the Queen at the front of the quire, nearest the altar.
Wearing a diamond brooch that once belonged to her grandmother Queen Mary, Queen Elizabeth sat alone until the funeral cortege followed her husband’s flag-draped
‘High sense of duty and integrity’
coffin into the chapel, whereupon Prince Andrew took his place two seats to her left.
Outside, a clear and crisp spring day had provided the backdrop to the sombre procession, away from well-wishers who had been urged to stay at home.
Inside, the Archbishop of Canterbury praised the duke’s ‘high sense of duty and integrity’ and the ‘courage and inspiration of his leadership’.
Later came the moment when Philip’s coffin was lowered into the royal vault, taking its place among centuries of kings and their consorts.
Then the Queen stood – desolate, masked, alone, without a hand to squeeze – watching the coffin bearing her husband of 73 years sink beneath the chapel’s marble floor.
It descended into a vault where the Duke of Edinburgh, who died aged 99, will rest temporarily among other royal antecedents, among them Henry VIII.
At the back of the chapel sat three of Philip’s relations who travelled from Germany.
At the end there was a slight hint of royal family reconciliation. Along with other senior royals, Prince William and Prince Harry eschewed waiting cars and walked together up the hill, deep in conversation.