Crowds and world leaders gather in the UK to honor the final moments of the 96-year-old who had spent 7 decades on British throne; King Charles III and royal family thank international ‘support and comfort’
Britain, world leaders and royalty from across the globe will on Monday bid a final farewell to Queen Elizabeth, the last towering figure of her era, at a state funeral of inimitable pageantry.
At 6.30am, an official lying-in-state period ends after four days in which hundreds of thousands have queued to file past the casket of Britain’s longest-reigning monarch at London’s historic Westminster Hall.
They, like many across the globe including U.S. President Joe Biden, had wanted to pay tribute to the 96-year-old who had spent seven decades on the British throne.”You were fortunate to have had her for 70 years,” Biden said.
“We all were.”Shortly before 11am, the oak coffin, covered in the Royal Standard flag with the Imperial State Crown on top, was to be placed on a gun carriage and pulled by naval personnel to Westminster Abbey for her funeral.Among the 2,000 in the congregation will be some 500 world leaders, including Biden, Emperor Naruhito of Japan, Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan, and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The queen’s great-grandchildren, Prince George, 9, and Princess Charlotte, 7, the two eldest children of now heir to the throne Prince William, will also be attending.
