Queen Elizabeth bids farewell to her prince

QUEEN Elizabeth 2nd bid a final farewell to her late husband, Prince Philip, whom she once called her “strength and stay,” on Saturday at a funeral restricted by coronavirus rules but reflecting his long life of military and public service.

The congregation was mostly close family, including the couple’s four children: heir to the throne Prince Charles, 72; Princess Anne, 70; Prince Andrew, 61; and Prince Edward, 57.

Also present were Charles’ eldest son William, 38, who was joined by younger brother, Harry, 36, after he jetted back last weekend from the United States, where he now lives.

All eyes were on the brothers — whose mother was Charles’ first wife, Princess Diana — after a reported falling out over Harry’s move to California with his American wife, Meghan, and their stinging criticisms of the royals.

Meghan, heavily pregnant with her second child, was advised not to travel on medical grounds.

The brothers, who as young boys walked behind their mother’s coffin at her funeral in 1997, followed the procession on foot but not side-by-side.

Between them was their cousin, Princess Anne’s son Peter Phillips, 43, which has fueled further rumors of the rift, even if it reflects royal protocol.

Senior members of the royal family, led by Prince Charles, walked in procession behind a specially modified Land Rover carrying Philip’s coffin through the castle grounds.

Also in attendance were Prince Charles’ second wife Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall; Prince William’s wife, Kate, 39, the Duchess of Cambridge; Princess Anne’s second husband, Vice Admiral Timothy Laurence, 66; and daughter Zara Tindall, 39; Prince Andrew’s daughters Princess Beatrice, 32, and Princess Eugenie, 31, who gave birth to her first child in February to whom she gave the middle name Philip in honor of the Duke of Edinburgh; Prince Edward’s wife Sophie, 56, who is known to be very close to the Queen and has reportedly comforted Elizabeth since her husband’s passing; their two children, 17-year-old Lady Louise Windsor, who has taken up Prince Philip’s passion for carriage driving, and James, Viscount Severn, 13.

Others were:

– Penelope Knatchbull or Penny, the Countess Mountbatten, 93, who was Philip’s carriage-driving partner and one of his closest friends. She is the wife of Earl Mountbatten, Norton Knatchbull. He is the grandson of Philip’s uncle the Earl Mountbatten, who was assassinated by the Irish Republican Army in 1979.

– Lady Sarah Chatto, 56, the daughter of the Queen’s late sister Princess Margaret, is said to be particularly close to Elizabeth and shares Prince Charles’ love of painting.

– Brigadier Archie Miller Bakewell, one of the few non-royals. He was Philip’s right-hand-man for years after serving as his private secretary since 2010.

Also present were Philip’s German relatives: Bernhard, the hereditary prince of Baden, 50, is the grandson of Philip’s sister Theodora; Donatus, 54, is prince and head of the house of Hesse, into which the late duke’s sister Cecile married; and Prince Philipp of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, 51, the grandson of Philip’s elder sister Princess Margarita.

The ceremony was held behind the stately walls of Windsor Castle, west of London, and was watched by millions on television, with the public urged to stay away because of the global pandemic.

The Duke of Edinburgh — described by royals as “the grandfather of the nation” — died on April 9, aged 99, just weeks after spending more than a month in hospital for treatment of a heart condition and an infection.

Britain’s longest-serving royal consort was an almost constant presence at the Queen’s side during her record-breaking reign that began in 1952, as Britain rebuilt from World War 2 and as its global empire began to unravel.

Government coronavirus regulations have forced hasty revisions to “Operation Forth Bridge”, the longrehearsed funeral plans for former Royal Navy commander Philip. But the stripped-back ceremonial funeral still featured members of the armed services he was associated with lining a short procession route through the immaculately trimmed grounds of the castle, whose history dates back 1,000 years.

A minute’s silence was observed across the country at 3 p.m. (1400 GMT) ahead of the funeral service.

Masks and social distancing

Funerals of senior royals are normally grand public affairs, honed over years of planning, combining pomp, pageantry, and a guest list that is a who’s who of world dignitaries.

The last major royal funeral — of the Queen’s mother, also called Queen Elizabeth — in 2002 cost more than £5.4 million ($7.4 million, 6.2 million euros).

Saturday’s ceremony was a more modest affair but a royal send-off like no other, with 2-meter social distancing in place inside the 15th century Gothic chapel.

All guests — in mourning black — were required to wear black face masks before, during and after the ceremony. Harry has had to quarantine since arriving from Los Angeles.

At the end of the funeral, led by the Dean of Windsor with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, the duke was privately interred in the Royal Vault of St George’s Chapel.

When the Queen dies, Philip will be transferred to lie alongside her in the King George 6th memorial chapel, which houses the remains of her father, George 6th, her mother, and the ashes of her younger sister, Princess Margaret.