A chapter in Western history is coming to an end. At the conclusion of a day of funeral splendor in symbols, the body of Elizabeth II now rests in the royal crypt.
Westminster Abbey will have over the years seen the marriage, coronation and funeral of Britain’s longest-reigning sovereign – the “Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the other Kingdoms of Commonwealth. »
At around 10:45 a.m., the royal coffin was removed from the pedestal in the Palace of Westminster where it was installed to be taken to the nearby abbey. The imperial crown, set with 2868 diamonds, rested on the chest alongside the scepter and the orb, symbols of monarchical power and the Christian world.
The long-awaited mass was able to begin once the remains were placed in the religious building.
During one of her last speeches, during the pandemic, the queen had launched: “We will meet again. The Archbishop of Canterbury, in a mystical impulse, took up these words to speak of the afterlife.
This ceremony, regulated to the millimeter, preceded a second at Windsor Castle. More intimate that one, it was no less serious. Between the two, a huge military procession headed by four members of the Canadian Mounted Police accompanied the coffin.
At the very end of this second funeral service, the three glittering symbols were removed and then placed on purple cushions. The Lord Chamberlain then broke his staff, then placed it on the coffin of Elizabeth II, marking the end of her reign for good. Everything was lowered slowly, vertically, into the royal vault. Finally, the Queen’s personal musician played his bagpipes; he gradually moved away from the chapel until he became inaudible.
There was only one last ceremony left, away from the cameras, for the sovereign’s immediate family to pay their last respects.
London cordoned off
For the occasion, the constabulary forces had closed the entire city center of the English capital to traffic. And for good reason. No less than 500 of the highest dignitaries on the planet were gathered to attend the ceremonies.
First: the President of the United States, Joe Biden, but also the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Israel, Turkey, Brazil, South Africa and from South Korea. The Prime Minister of Canada was invited, of course, as were his Australian and New Zealand counterparts.
Many monarchs have also taken up residence in Westminster Abbey. The Emperor of Japan, on his first visit abroad since his accession to the throne three years ago, was there. All the European elite made an act of presence: the King of Norway, the Prince of Monaco, the King of the Netherlands, the King of Sweden, the King of the Belgians, the Queen of Denmark, the King of Spain.
In all, 2,000 hand-picked individuals attended the liturgical celebration in person while tens of thousands watched outside from a distance.
The people gather
Ordinary people instead congregated in parks, designated cathedrals and other public places to watch the ceremony on a giant screen. Especially since the good weather blessed this day of mourning.
Hyde Park, the largest park in central London, was packed. The two minutes of silence closing the first ceremony silenced the usually noisy city.
Even non-royalists could not resist taking part in this great gathering. This was the case of the oldest spectator found by The duty in the Hyde Park crowd, Sarah Wills, 85 — “barely a little younger than the Queen,” she says. “The Queen lived a privileged life. She was discreet. We never knew her opinions, although she must have had some. But to see the amount of people here, it obviously had an impact on their lives. »
This report was financed thanks to the support of the Transat International Journalism Fund. The duty