PHILIP’S NO-FUSS FAREWELL
The Duke of Edinburgh will be laid to rest on April 17, following eight days of national mourning. Instead of a large funeral, it will be attended by just 30 people and will see his body taken to the Royal Vault within St George’s Chapel on a specially modified Land Rover he helped design. The “hearse” is a special touch for a man who had a long-held interest in design and engineering. The coffin will process through the grounds of Windsor Castle at a walking pace to the chapel. The armed forces will line the route and the duke’s children and other close family will walk behind the coffin. The Queen will travel separately to the ceremony. The palace has confirmed that Prince Harry will travel from America to farewell his grandfather, but his pregnant wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex has been “advised not to travel” by her doctor. Guns will be fired by the Kings Troop Royal Horse Artillery and the Curfew Tower bell will toll. Upon arrival, the coffin will be received by a guard of honour and the band from the Rifles, with the national anthem playing as the duke enters Horseshoe Cloister. Royal marines will then carry the coffin up the steps and pause for a minute’s silence before the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Dean of Windsor receive the coffin. Following the televised funeral, official royal mourning will take place for two weeks.