United Kingdom

World Says Final Goodbye to Queen Elizabeth II With Elaborate State Funeral

The United Kingdom's longest-reigning monarch was honored by world leaders and mourners around the globe during a service at Westminster Abbey in London before being taken to Windsor Castle to be interred at King George VI Memorial Chapel next to her late husband, Prince Philip

The Committal Service For Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
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Pall bearers from the Queen’s Company, 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards carry the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II with the Imperial State Crown resting on top into St. George’s Chapel on September 19, 2022 in Windsor, England.

Queen Elizabeth II was honored on Monday at a state funeral that drew presidents and kings, princes and prime ministers as well as up to a million people lining the streets of London to say a final goodbye to a monarch whose 70-year reign defined an age.

Members of the Queen's family, including King Charles III, Queen Consort Camilla, The Prince and Princess of Wales and their two eldest children and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex joined nearly 2,000 other mourners at Westminster Abbey for a service honoring the country's longest serving monarch.

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A day packed with funeral events in London and Windsor began early when the doors of 900-year-old Westminster Hall were closed to mourners after hundreds of thousands had filed in front of her coffin since Sept 14. Many of them had spent cold nights outdoors to pay their respects at the foot of the queen’s flag-draped coffin in a moving outpouring of national grief.

The closing of the hall marked the end of four full days of the coffin lying in state and the start of the U.K.’s first state funeral since the one held in 1965 for Winston Churchill, the first of 15 prime ministers during Elizabeth's reign. Two days before her Sept. 8 death at her Balmoral summer retreat, the queen appointed her last prime minister, Liz Truss.

Soon after her coffin was transferred to a gun carriage for transportation to Westminster Abbey, a bell at the historic church began tolling 96 times, once for each year of Queen Elizabeth II’s life.

The same gun carriage was used to carry the coffins of late kings Edward VII, George V, and George VI and of Churchill.

The queen’s coffin was draped with the royal standard and a wreath of flowers including blooms and foliage cut from the gardens of Buckingham Palace and Clarence House at Charles’s request.

They include rosemary for remembrance, and myrtle cut from a plant that was grown from a sprig of myrtle in the queen’s wedding bouquet in 1947.

Dean of Westminster David Hoyle opened the service in the ancient abbey, where Elizabeth was married and crowned.

Members of the Royal Family arrived at Westminster Abbey on Monday to attend the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.

He said: “We gather from across the nation, from the Commonwealth, and from the nations of the world, to mourn our loss, to remember her long life of selfless service, and in sure confidence to commit her to the mercy of God our maker and redeemer.”

The funeral service included readings and hymns of significance to the queen, including the hymn “The Lord’s My Shepherd,” which was sung at her wedding to Prince Philip in the same abbey in 1947.

During the service, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby said “few leaders receive the outpouring of love we have seen” for Queen Elizabeth II.

In a sermon at the monarch’s funeral in Westminster Abbey, the leader of the Church of England said the queen “was joyful, present to so many, touching a multitude of lives.”

Recalling the queen’s promise on her 21st birthday that “her whole life would be dedicated to serving the nation and the Commonwealth,” Welby said: “Rarely has such a promise been so well kept.”

The service ended with two minutes of silence followed by the national anthem and a piper’s lament, before the queen’s coffin was taken in a procession ringed by units of the armed forces in dress uniforms, with her children walking behind, to Wellington Arch near Buckingham Palace.

There it was placed in a hearse and driven to Windsor for another procession along the Long Walk, a three-mile avenue leading to the town’s castle before a committal service in St. George’s Chapel.

She was laid to rest with her late husband, Prince Philip, at a private family service.

Where Will Queen Elizabeth Be Buried?

Following the State Funeral in London, the queen's coffin was driven in the state hearse to Windsor for a committal service at St. George's Chapel near Windsor Castle, attended by 800 people, including members of the queen's household and Windsor estate staff.

At the end of the service, the coffin was lowered into the Royal Vault and the sovereign’s piper played a lament. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, pronounced the blessing and the congregation sang “God Save The King.”

Members of the royal family held a private burial service at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, where the queen was interred with her late husband, Prince Philip, who died last year at 99.

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The Ceremonial Procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II travels down the Long Walk as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the Committal Service at St George’s Chapel, in Windsor, England, Monday, Sept. 19, 2022.
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Flowers on the hearse carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the Committal Service in St George’s Chapel, in Windsor, England, Sept. 19, 2022.
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Flowers cover the hearse carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II as it arrives on the Albert Road outside Windsor Castle in Windsor, England, Monday, Sept. 19, 2022.
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Princess Charlotte sits in a car during the State Funeral Service of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II on the Mall in London, Sept. 19, 2022.
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King Charles III and Prince William attend the state funeral and burial of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth, in London, Sept. 19, 2022.
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The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II is carried by the Bearer Party as it departs Westminster Abbey during the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, Sept. 19, 2022, in London.
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The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II with the Imperial State Crown resting on top is carried by the Bearer Party as it departs Westminster Abbey during the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, Sept. 19, 2022, in London.
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Horse Guards Parade after the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II along The Mall on Sept. 19, 2022, in London, England.
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King Charles III, Anne, Princess Royal, Prince Andrew, Duke of York and Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, Prince William, Prince of Wales and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, David Armstrong-Jones, 2nd Earl of Snowdon and Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester walk behind the the Queen’s funeral cortege borne on the State Gun Carriage of the Royal Navy as it departs Westminster Abbey, Sept. 19, 2022, in London.
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The Queen’s funeral cortege borne on the State Gun Carriage of the Royal Navy travels along The Mall Sept. 19, 2022, in London.
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Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, Camilla, Queen Consort, Princess Charlotte of Wales and Sophie, Countess of Wessex watch as the Queen’s funeral cortege borne on the State Gun Carriage of the Royal Navy departs Westminster Abbey, Sept. 19, 2022, in London.
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Royal Navy Sailors walk ahead and behind the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard, as it travels on the State Gun Carriage of the Royal Navy from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch in London on Sept. 19, 2022, after the State Funeral Service of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II.
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Buckingham Palace household staff pay their respects during the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, Sept. 19, 2022, in London.
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The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II departs Westminster Abbey during the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, Sept. 19, 2022, in London.
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The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II departs Westminster Abbey during the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II on Sept. 19, 2022, in London, England.
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Members of the media at work as the funeral procession arrives at Westminster Abbey in London, Sept. 19, 2022, for the State Funeral Service for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II.
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The coffin of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth is carried inside Westminster Abbey on Sept. 19, 2022, in London.
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The funeral service of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey in London, Sept. 19, 2022. The Queen, who died aged 96 on Sept. 8, will be buried at Windsor alongside her late husband, Prince Philip, who died last year.
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Members of the Royal family and guests sing as the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard, lies by the altar during the State Funeral Service for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, at Westminster Abbey in London, Sept. 19, 2022.
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Prince William, Prince of Wales, and Prince George of Wales attend the State Funeral Service for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, at Westminster Abbey in London, Sept. 19, 2022.
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British Prime Minister Liz Truss speaks during the State Funeral Service for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, at Westminster Abbey in London on Sept. 19, 2022. Truss was the last Prime Minister ever appointed by the late queen.
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The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, with the Imperial State Crown resting on top, is carried by the Bearer Party into Westminster Abbey during the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II on Sept. 19, 2022 in London.
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The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, with the Imperial State Crown resting on top, is carried into Westminster Abbey on Sept. 19, 2022, in London, England.
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President Joe Biden takes his seats with other heads of state and dignitaries at the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, held at Westminster Abbey, Sept. 19, 2022 in London.
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Britain’s Catherine, Princess of Wales, Princess Charlotte and Prince George arrive for the State Funeral Service of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey in London on Sept. 19, 2022.
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Former British Prime Ministers and spouses, from left: back pew –Carrie Johnson, Boris Johnson, Philip May, Theresa May and David Cameron; front pew – Sarah Brown, Gordon Brown, Cherie Blair, Tony Blair, Norma Major and John Major attend the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey, Sept. 19, 2022 in London, England.
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Guests arrive to take their seats inside Westminster Abbey in London, Sept. 19, 2022, for the State Funeral Service for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II.
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King Charles III, Princess Anne, Princess Royal, Prince Andrew, Duke of York and Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex arrive at Westminster Abbey in London, Sept. 19, 2022, for the State Funeral Service for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II.
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King Charles III, Princess Anne, Princess Royal, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Prince William, Prince of Wales, take part in the state funeral and burial of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey on Sept. 19, 2022 in London.
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Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, arrives at Westminster Abbey for The State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II on Sept. 19, 2022, in London.
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Prince William, Prince of Wales, Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, King Charles III, and Anne, Princess Royal walk alongside Yeoman of the Guards at the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II on Sept. 19, 2022, in London.
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The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard, arrives at Westminster Abbey in London on Sept. 19, 2022, for the State Funeral Service for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II.
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The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, with the Imperial State Crown resting on top, borne on the State Gun Carriage of the Royal Navy, proceeds towards Westminster Abbey on Sept. 19, 2022, in London, England.
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Inside Westminster Abbey ahead of The State Funeral Of Queen Elizabeth II, Sept. 19, 2022, in London, England.
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People wait along the route that the coffin of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II will pass by during her funeral service in Westminster Abbey in London, Sept. 19, 2022.
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Early crowds gather in anticipation of the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II in Whitehall, Sept. 19, 2022 in London.
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Members of the public camp behind barriers lining the procession route, ahead of the funeral of the late Queen Elizabeth II, in London, Sept. 18, 2022.
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Prince William, Prince of Wales, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Princess Eugenie of York, Princess Beatrice of York, Peter Phillips, Zara Tindall, Lady Louise Windsor, James, Viscount Severn arrive to hold a vigil in honor of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Hall on Sept. 17, 2022, in London.

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