Queen Elizabeth II, who will be honored with a funeral at Westminster Abbey today and later laid to rest alongside her husband of 73 years, her sister Margaret, and her parents, is mourned by the United Kingdom and much of the rest of the globe.
The state burial is anticipated to draw the largest assembly of international leaders in recent memory, as well as millions of spectators to London’s streets and billions more to their televisions and computers. The funeral and the activities that followed it were intended to bring the divided subjects and the royal family together and ensure that the monarchy endures for another 100 years.
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The oldest children of Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, will attend their grandmother’s funeral with their parents.
The funeral’s order of service showed that George and Charlotte will walk together behind their parents. The Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry, and other members of the royal family will come after them.
Prince Louis, the 4-year-old sibling of the royal children, is not anticipated to attend the funeral, which will be attended by about 2,000 people.
Up to two million people may line the streets as members of the royal family and hundreds of foreign dignitaries and heads of state arrive at Westminster Abbey for a ceremony that is expected to be filled with all the pomp and extravagance the monarchy has to offer, according to the London mayor’s office.
According to officials, more than 10,000 police officers from all 43 police departments in Britain were on patrol in London. Sniffer dogs were on the streets, snipers were on rooftops, drains were being searched, and surveillance drones had been outlawed throughout central London as of 6 a.m. local time. To manage crowds as the queen’s coffin moves the short distance from Westminster Hall, where it is lying-in-state, to Westminster Abbey, and then on to Windsor Castle after the funeral for burial, around 20 kilometers of barriers have been erected.
On a holiday, London’s transit system was already bustling five hours before the burial began, with people rushing to find viewing locations near Buckingham Palace and the Palace of Westminster on the subway system. Many had compact folding chairs with them.
Where will Queen Elizabeth II be buried?
The queen will be laid to rest at Windsor Castle’s St. George Chapel, which also houses the graves of many of her predecessors, including her parents, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, afterwards known as the Queen Mother.
King Charles, other members of the royal family, former and present members of the queen’s household, governors general, and prime ministers of the realms will accompany the coffin procession after the funeral at Westminster Abbey.
SOURCE: www.ghnewslive.com
