Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II

 

Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Princess of Wales, Countess of Wessex

Queen’s Ladies-in-Waiting Arriving at Westminster Abbey

Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Princess of Wales

Catherine, Princess of Wales

Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Princess of Wales, Queen Consort

Princess of Wales, PrincessCharlotte

Princess Charlotte 

Princess Charlotte

The Princess of Wales, Princess Charlotte, Prince George

Westminster Abbey

William, Prince of Wales, King Charles III

King Charles III and Queen Camilla (Consort)

Lament “Sleep, Dearie, Sleep,” played by Queen’s Piper

The Queen Leaves Balmoral for the Last Time

 

I believe one is never prepared to view the coffin of a loved one. All those around the world who loved Queen Elizabeth II surely shed at tear at the first sight of the hearse carrying her coffin as it left Balmoral yesterday.

The cortège headed to Edinburgh to carry the Queen to the Palace of Holyroodhouse.

Queen’s Coffin Arrives at Holyroodhouse

The coffin was met by the Duke of York,The Earl and Countess of Wessex, The Princess Royal, and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence. The coffin rested in the Throne Room until this afternoon when it was conveyed to St. Giles’ Cathedral, Edinburgh.

King Charles, Anne, Andrew, and Edward stood guard over the Queen’s coffin in a moving 15-minute vigil. The Queen will lie in state until tomorrow evening, when her coffin will be flown back to London.

I have been sipping the Queen’s favorite tea, Earl Grey, and browsing through the latest issue of Victoria Magazine—the British issue. As it turns out, this issue features a romantic tour of Scotland, with stunning photos and interesting stories of Balmoral and Holyroodhouse. It’s a must read!

Teatime while mourning the Queen

What Happens When the Queen Dies?

*Update: Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II died today. It is a day that I have dreaded for so long. Today begins the 12 days of mourning for her family, the people in the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth realms, and millions of people around the world who admired and loved her.  

The following is a post that I wrote many years ago:

The Queen has lived a long, remarkable life.  At the age of 92, she appears to get along better than most people her age, but has recently scaled back her official duties.  It's hard to face the fact that one day she will be gone, but unfortunately, she is not going to live forever.   How will those of us who admire her ever get on?  There will never be another royal quite like her.  She has lived through 13 British Prime Ministers and U.S. Presidents.

The Queen's death has been recently rehearsed for the very first time by ministers.  The run-through exercise to prepare for the twelve days of mourning was given the code name "Castle Dove" by civil servants and politicians.  'D-1' will be the day after the Queen dies.  Oh my goodness, this talk of the Queen's death is just too much to handle.  Her Senior Doctor, Huw Thomas, will be in charge.  He will have full control over her room as he looks after her in her final moments.  He will even be in charge of what information goes public and what stays within the family.  "London Bridge" will be the secret code for her death. {not very secret now, is it?} 

Upon her death, her private secretary, Edward Young, will contact the prime minister with the message "London Bridge is down."  Lord have mercy!  Following their conversation, the news will spread to the governments where the Queen is head of state and the Commonwealth countries--then onto the rest of the world.

The sheer magnitude of her death will be an event unlike anything else in Britain.  The moment will be a sad one for people all over the world.  Expect people to be shell-shocked, expect mass public grief, and perhaps hysteria.  {ME}  The mourning period will be a disruptive event in Britain for sure.  The chaos is expected to cost the U.K. economy billions in lost earnings and the stock markets and banks will likely close.

Following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, there will be twelve days of official mourning.  The official mourning period will give both government officials and the British public enough time to pay their respects as the royal family makes funeral arrangements for the monarch. 

As soon as news of Queen Elizabeth II's death goes to press, a mourning footman will place a black-edged notice on Buckingham Palace's gates.  Buckingham Palace's website will also go dark and transform into a single page featuring the same notice.




When the Queen dies, BBC news anchors are expected to immediately change into funeral attire--a black suit with a black tie {which they have waiting on deck}--to announce the Queen's death to their audience.  For the 12 days between her death and her funeral, BBC and other public channels are strictly forbidden from airing any humorous programming.  Of course, the Queen has picked out specific documentaries about her life.  These documentaries have been pre-recorded and will air on TV following her death.

Because the throne is never without a ruler, at the moment of Queen Elizabeth's death, Prince Charles will become the King of England and the supreme governor of the church of England.  He will pick his new name from any of his Christian or middle names.


And...because there is never NOT a sovereign on the throne, this is why the Royal Standard is never flown at half mast.


The union flag will be flown at half mast throughout the mourning period until 8am the morning after the funeral.




During the twelve days of mourning, the Queen's coffin will be put on display--or in official terms, lie in state--for those who wish to pay their respects.  The Queen will lie in state in Westminster Hall for 4 days.  It is estimated that almost a million people will walk past her catafalque.

The day before the funeral, male members of the royal family will stand guard for a short period in a ceremony known as the Vigil of the Princes.  This will be a sad day for the U.K., the Commonwealth, and the World.


Male members of the Royal Family stand guard at the catafalque of Queen Elizabeth I

The Queen has been actively involved in planning parts of her funeral, which will be sure to be a elaborate event.  Her body will be transported via gun carriage to Westminster Abbey for her funeral, where it is planned that Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, will lead the funeral service.


Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury

Westminster Abbey
The final resting place for the Queen might be next to her mother Queen Elizabeth I and her father King George at St. George's Castle.  Another option is for a burial at one of her private residences like Balmoral or Sandringham.

Even though Prince Charles will become the King of England upon Queen Elizabeth's death, his coronation will not be held until one year later.  And...I'm pretty sure they have the new words to the National Anthem ready to go.  {sniff sniff}

Sad post over.

The Queen

I bought this pretty book because I thought the cover was beautiful and it would be a nice coffee table book.  It is not a biography of the Queen, but is about her life and reign.  This book is full of gorgeous photos of the Queen and her family and it also includes several side stories of people who serve the Queen.

I have been planning for some time to write about the Queen and her lifestyle.  Due to her recent public appearance cancellations, for the first time EVER, the Queen's funeral and mourning plans have been rehearsed by ministers.  Ugh!  I can't deal with that news.  I will go into this subject in another post, but for now I feel it's time to show my admiration of her style.

Elizabeth Alexandra Mary was born in London, April 21, 1926, to the Duke and Duchess of York, later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth I.

Elizabeth was married to Philip Mountbatten on November 20, 1947.


The official wedding family portrait, November 20, 1947.


After her father ascended to the throne in 1936 on the abdication of his brother King Edward VIII, she became the heir presumptive.  Upon her father's death in 1952, she became queen regnant and was coronated as the Queen (after a mourning period) on June 2, 1953.  Her Royal Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has been on the throne for 65 years, longer than any British monarch in history


Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburg with Prince Charles, Prince Andrew,  Anne--Princess Royal, and Prince Edward.


I love this photo of Queen Elizabeth...so regal and elegant!


These are a few notable facts about the Queen:
~Her nickname is "Lilibet" which was given to her by her late sister Margaret when they were little girls--because Margaret constantly mispronounced her big sister's name.
~Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and Queen Elizabeth are third cousins, sharing the same great-great grandparents--Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.
~The Queen can travel anywhere she wants--no passport needed; nor does she need a driver's license.
~Her love of corgis is well known and she has owned more than 30 of them during her reign.  She stopped breeding them in 2015 because she didn't want to leave any behind after she died. (sniff sniff)
~Her last Corgi, Willow, died this past April. (sniff sniff, again)  She still has 2 dogs, Vulcan and Candy, which are her "Dorgis"--Dachshund and Corgi cross breeds.

Everyone wants to know what the Queen eats and drinks.  Well, according to reports, she loves Special K cereal with fruit (strawberries or peaches) in the morning, along with an Earl Grey tea.  She sometimes has toast and marmalade or scrambled eggs.

For lunch, she prefers fish with vegetables. 

Afternoon tea is at 5:00 p.m. sharp!  Her tea sandwiches are cut into squares, with the corners cut off--similar to an octagon-like shape; of course, the bread crusts are cut off.

For dinner, she likes lamb, roast beef, or salmon.  Anything chocolate is her favorite dessert.

Cocktails? Well, Queen Elizabeth loves her cocktails!  A glass of wine at lunch, a dry martini with dinner, champagne with dessert at dinner, and a Gin and Dubonnet nightcap.  Whew!  Being a Queen is not easy!

What does she NOT like?  Garlic, onions, out-of-season fruit, white eggs (she only eats brown eggs), rare meat (her meat must be well done), rice, potatoes, and pasta.  Of course, I'm sure the Queen practices proper dining etiquette when she is at an event outside of her home and eats whatever she is served, without complaints.

Thank you for visiting me today.  Tomorrow I will be talking about the Queen's Ladies-in-Waiting.