By DANICA KIRKA, MIKE CORDER and JILL LAWLESS
LONDON (AP) — Britain and the world mentioned a remaining goodbye to Queen Elizabeth II at a state funeral Monday that drew presidents and kings, princes and prime ministers — and crowds who massed alongside the streets of London to honor a monarch whose 70-year reign outlined an age.
In a rustic identified for pomp and pageantry, the primary state funeral since Winston Churchill’s was stuffed with spectacle: Forward of the service, a bell tolled 96 occasions — as soon as a minute for every year of Elizabeth’s life. Then, 142 Royal Navy sailors used ropes to attract the gun carriage carrying her flag-draped coffin to Westminster Abbey earlier than pallbearers bore it contained in the church, the place round 2,000 individuals starting from world leaders to well being care employees gathered to mourn her.
The trimmings of state and monarchy abounded: The coffin was draped with the Royal Customary and atop it sat the Imperial State Crown, glowing with nearly 3,000 diamonds, and the sovereign’s orb and scepter.
However the private was additionally current: The coffin was adopted into the church by generations of Elizabeth’s descendants, together with King Charles III, inheritor to the throne Prince William and 9-year-old George, who's second in line. On a wreath atop the coffin, a handwritten word learn, “In loving and devoted reminiscence,” and was signed Charles R — for Rex, or king.
“Right here, the place Queen Elizabeth was married and topped, we collect from throughout the nation, from the Commonwealth, and from the nations of the world, to mourn our loss, to recollect her lengthy lifetime of selfless service, and in positive confidence to commit her to the mercy of God our maker and redeemer,” the dean of the medieval abbey, David Hoyle, advised the mourners, because the funeral opened.
The service drew to a detailed with two minutes of silence noticed throughout the UK, after which the attendees sang the nationwide anthem, now titled “God Save the King.”
The day started early when the doorways of Parliament’s 900-year-old Westminster Corridor had been closed to mourners after tons of of hundreds had filed in entrance of her coffin. Many had waited for hours in line, together with via chilly nights, to attend the mendacity in state in an outpouring of collective grief and respect.
“I felt like I needed to come and pay my remaining respects to our majestic queen. She has executed a lot for us and just a bit thanks actually from the individuals,” mentioned Tracy Dobson, who was among the many final to hitch the road.
Monday was declared a public vacation in honor of Elizabeth, who died Sept. 8 — and tons of of hundreds of individuals descended on central London to partake within the historic second. They jammed the sidewalks to look at the coffin wend its approach via the streets of the capital after the service. Because the procession handed Buckingham Palace, the queen’s official residence within the metropolis, workers stood exterior, some bowing and curtseying.
Tens of millions extra tuned into the funeral stay on tv, and crowds flocked to parks and public areas throughout the U.Ok. to look at it on screens. Even the Google doodle turned a respectful black for the day.
Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby mentioned in his sermon that “few leaders obtain the outpouring of affection we now have seen” for Elizabeth.
After the passage via central London, the coffin was positioned in a hearse and headed for Windsor Citadel — the place Elizabeth spent a lot of her time. Mourners threw flowers on the convoy because it handed.
There will probably be one other procession in Windsor earlier than a committal service in St. George’s Chapel. The queen will probably be laid to relaxation along with her late husband, Prince Philip, at a non-public household service.
On the night earlier than the funeral, Charles issued a message of because of individuals within the U.Ok. and around the globe, saying he and his spouse Camilla, the queen consort, have been “moved past measure” by the massive numbers of people that have turned out to pay their respects to the queen.
Folks throughout Britain paused for a minute of silence at 8 p.m. Sunday in reminiscence of the one monarch most have ever identified. At Westminster Corridor, the fixed stream of mourners paused for 60 seconds as individuals noticed the minute of reflection in deep silence.
In Windsor, rain started to fall as the group fell silent for the second of reflection. Some camped in a single day exterior the citadel to be able to reserve the most effective spots to view the queen’s coffin.
Jilly Fitzgerald, who was in Windsor, mentioned there was a way of group among the many mourners as they ready to attend hours to see procession carrying the queen’s coffin.
“It’s good to be with all of the people who find themselves all feeling the identical. It’s like a giant household as a result of everybody feels that … the queen was a part of their household,” she mentioned.
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Related Press journalists Sylvia Hui, Samya Kullab and David Keyton contributed to this report.
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Observe AP protection of Queen Elizabeth II at https://apnews.com/hub/queen-elizabeth-ii