Queen Elizabeth's coffin reaches Windsor chapel ahead of burial

Queen Elizabeth's coffin arrived astatine Windsor Castle, her last resting place, connected Monday aft a time of matchless pageantry that drew satellite leaders to her ceremonial and hundreds of thousands of radical to the streets to accidental farewell to a revered monarch.

Well-wishers lined the way her hearse took from London, throwing flowers, cheering and clapping arsenic it passed from the metropolis to the English countryside that she truthful loved much.

Thousands much had crammed into the superior to witnesser the procession and funeral, successful a fitting tribute to Britain's longest-serving monarch who won planetary respect during 70 years connected the throne.

Inside the majestic Westminster Abbey wherever the ceremonial was held, immoderate 500 presidents premier ministers, overseas royal household members and dignitaries, including Joe Biden of the United States, were among the 2,000 congregation.

Later the attraction switched to St George's Chapel successful Windsor Castle, wherever immoderate 800 guests attended a committal work up of her burial.

It concludes with the crown, orb and scepter — symbols of the monarch's powerfulness and governance — being removed from the coffin and placed connected the altar.

The Lord Chamberlain, the astir elder authoritative successful the royal household, past breaks his 'Wand of Office,' signifying the extremity of his work to the sovereign, and places it connected the casket.

Later successful the evening, successful a backstage household service, the coffin of Elizabeth and her hubby of much than 7 decades, Prince Philip, who died past twelvemonth aged 99, volition beryllium buried unneurotic successful the aforesaid chapel wherever her parents and sister, Princess Margaret, besides rest.

At the funeral, Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, told those contiguous that the grief felt by truthful galore crossed Britain and the wider satellite reflected the precocious monarch's "abundant beingness and loving service."

"Her precocious majesty famously declared connected a 21st day broadcast that her full beingness would beryllium dedicated to serving the federation and Commonwealth," helium said.

"Rarely has specified a committedness been truthful good kept. Few leaders person the outpouring of emotion that we person seen."

Music that played astatine the queen's wedding successful 1947 and her coronation six years aboriginal again rang out. The coffin entered to lines of scripture acceptable to a people utilized astatine each authorities ceremonial since the aboriginal 18th century.

After the funeral, her flag-draped casket was pulled by sailors done London's streets connected a weapon carriage successful 1 of the largest subject processions seen successful Britain, involving thousands of members of the equipped forces dressed successful ceremonial finery.

They walked successful measurement to ceremonial euphony from marching bands, portion successful the inheritance the city's celebrated Big Ben tolled each minute. King Charles and different elder royals followed connected foot.

The casket was taken from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch and transferred to a hearse to question to Windsor, wherever much large crowds waited patiently.

Among the crowds who came from astir Britain and beyond, radical climbed lampposts and stood connected barriers and ladders to drawback a glimpse of the royal procession.

Some wore astute achromatic suits and dresses. Others were dressed successful hoodies, leggings and tracksuits. A pistillate with dyed greenish hairsbreadth stood adjacent to a antheral successful a greeting suit arsenic they waited for the London procession to begin.

Millions much watched connected tv astatine location connected a nationalist vacation declared for the occasion, the archetypal clip the ceremonial of a British monarch has been televised.

"I've been coming to Windsor for 50 years now," said Baldev Bhakar, 72, a jeweler from the adjacent municipality of Slough, speaking extracurricular Windsor Castle.

"I saw her galore times implicit the years; it felt similar she was our neighbour and she was conscionable a beauteous woman; a beauteous queen. It was bully to accidental 1 past goodbye to our neighbor."

Elizabeth died connected Sept. 8 astatine Balmoral Castle, her summertime location successful the Scottish highlands.

Her wellness had been successful decline, and for months the monarch who had carried retired hundreds of authoritative engagements good into her 90s had withdrawn from nationalist life.

However, successful enactment with her consciousness of duty, she was photographed conscionable 2 days earlier she died, looking frail but smiling and holding a walking instrumentality arsenic she appointed Liz Truss arsenic her 15th and last premier minister.

Such was her longevity and her inextricable nexus with Britain that adjacent her ain household recovered her passing a shock.

"We each thought she was invincible," Prince William told well-wishers.

The 40th sovereign successful a enactment that traces its lineage backmost to 1066, Elizabeth came to the throne successful 1952 and became Britain's archetypal post-imperial monarch.

She oversaw her federation trying to carve retired a caller spot successful the world, and she was instrumental successful the emergence of the Commonwealth of Nations, present a grouping comprising 56 countries.

When she succeeded her begetter George VI, Winston Churchill was her archetypal premier curate and Josef Stalin led the Soviet Union. She met large figures from authorities to amusement and athletics including Nelson Mandela, Pope John Paul II, the Beatles, Marilyn Monroe, Pele and Roger Federer.

Despite being reputedly 5ft 3ins (1.6m) tall, she dominated rooms with her beingness and became a towering planetary figure, praised successful decease from Paris and Washington to Moscow and Beijing. National mourning was observed successful Brazil, Jordan and Cuba, countries with which she had small nonstop link.

"People of loving work are uncommon successful immoderate locomotion of life," Welby said during the funeral. "Leaders of loving work are inactive rarer. But successful each cases, those who service volition beryllium loved and remembered erstwhile those who cling to powerfulness and privileges are agelong forgotten."

The tenor doorbell of the Abbey - the tract of coronations, weddings and burials of English and past British kings and queens for astir 1,000 years - tolled 96 times.

Among the hymns chosen for the work was "The Lord's my Shepherd," sung astatine the wedding of the queen and her hubby Prince Philip successful the Abbey successful 1947. In the royal radical pursuing the casket into the Abbey was the queen's great-grandson and aboriginal king, Prince George, aged nine.

In summation to dignitaries, the congregation included those awarded Britain's highest subject and civilian medals for gallantry, representatives from charities supported by the queen and those who made "extraordinary contributions" to dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Towards the extremity of the service, the religion and overmuch of the federation fell soundless for 2 minutes. Trumpets rang retired earlier the congregation sang "God Save the King." Outside, crowds joined successful and broke into applause erstwhile the anthem was over.

The queen's piper brought the work to an extremity with a lament called "Sleep, Dearie, Sleep" that faded to silence.