Edinburgh, Scotland — In a solemn, royal procession, the flag-draped coffin of Queen Elizabeth II was driven gently through the Scottish countryside from her beloved Balmoral Castle to the Scottish capital of Edinburgh on Sunday. Participants in a historic farewell to a monarch who had reigned for seventy years jammed city streets and highway bridges or lined rural roads with automobiles and tractors.
The hearse escorted a seven-car cortege from Balmoral, where the queen died on Thursday at the age of 96, on a six-hour journey through Scottish towns to Holyroodhouse palace in Edinburgh. The deceased queen’s casket was wrapped in the Royal Standard for Scotland and crowned with a garland of flowers from the estate, including sweet peas, which were among her favorite flowers.
The procession was a major event in Scotland and the United Kingdom. Britain mourns for days its longest-reigning king, the only one the majority of its citizens have ever known. People in Edinburgh arrived hours in advance to secure a spot along the police barricades. In several locations, the throngs were 10 people deep by the afternoon.
Angus Ruthven, a 54-year-old civil servant from Edinburgh, stated, “I believe she has been a constant in my life; she was the monarch I was born under, and she has always been there.” I believe it will take some time to adjust to her absence, as it was fairly unexpected.
The Royal Mile in Edinburgh grew silent as the hearse carrying the queen approached. As the convoy disappeared from view, however, the throng spontaneously began to applaud.
The funeral procession of Queen Elizabeth II as it traveled along the Royal Mile towards Holyroodhouse on September 11, 2022 in Edinburgh, Scotland. JAMIE WILLIAMS/POOL/AFP courtesy of Getty Images
When the hearse arrived at Holyroodhouse, members of the Royal Regiment of Scotland in green tartan kilts carried the coffin past the queen’s three youngest children — Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward — and into the throne room, where it will remain until Monday afternoon so that staff can pay their respects.
King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla will fly to Edinburgh on Monday to participate in another sad procession carrying the queen’s casket to St. Giles Cathedral on the Royal Mile. The Scottish public will have 24 hours to pay their respects before the coffin is flown to London on Tuesday.
The first town the procession passed through was Ballater, where the royal family is considered neighbors. Hundreds of individuals stood in silence and tossed flowers towards the hearse.
Victoria Pacheco, a guesthouse manager, remarked, “It was incredible to witness how many people were crying since she meant so much to our community.”
In every Scottish town and village, the entourage was greeted with respectful silence. People stood fairly silently, but some applauded courteously and others pointed their cell phone photos at the passing vehicles. Farmers in Aberdeenshire lined the path with a tractor honor guard.
Along the way, the cortege passed by historical sites associated with the House of Windsor. These included Dyce, where the queen inaugurated the first North Sea oil pipeline in the United Kingdom in 1975, and Fife, near St. Andrews University, where her grandson Prince William studied and met his future wife Catherine.
The mournful procession occurred on the same day that the queen’s eldest son, King Charles III, was officially proclaimed the new ruler in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. It occurred a day after the pompous English accession ceremony.
Charles stated on Saturday, “I am acutely aware of this tremendous heritage and the obligations and weighty responsibilities of sovereignty that have now passed to me.”
Just prior to the reading of the proclamation on Sunday in Edinburgh, a demonstrator holding a sign denouncing imperialism and encouraging leaders to “abolish the monarchy” was apprehended by police. Reactions varied. One man yelled, “Free speech! Let her go!” while others yelled, “Have some respect!”
Still, there was some jeering in Edinburgh as Lord Lyon King of Arms Joseph Morrow concluded his declaration with “God save the king!”
Ann Hamilton, aged 48, described the booing as “just awful.”
She remarked, “There are tens of thousands of people here today to express their respect. If they were so opposed to it, they shouldn’t have come here and heckled during the proceedings.”
Nonetheless, it was an indication of how some, notably Britain’s former colonies, struggle with the monarchy’s legacy.
Earlier, proclamations were read in Australia and New Zealand, among other Commonwealth nations.
Even as he mourned his mother’s passing, Charles was meeting with the secretary-general and other representatives of the Commonwealth at Buckingham Palace. The colonial legacies of these nations ranged from blatant slavery to physical punishment in African schools to looted items housed in British cultural institutions.
After the May election, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese began building the basis for an Australian republic. However, he stated on Sunday that now was not the time for change, but rather for paying honor to the late queen.
All government buildings in India, a former British colony, celebrated a day of state mourning with flags at half-staff.
Amidst the House of Windsor’s mourning, there were suggestions of a potential familial reconciliation. Prince William, his brother Harry, and their respective wives, Catherine, Princess of Wales, and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, surprised mourners with an united appearance Saturday near Windsor Castle.
The queen’s coffin was returning to the capital via a convoluted route. On Wednesday, the casket will be carried from Buckingham Palace to the Houses of Parliament, where it will lay in state until the royal burial in Westminster Abbey on September 19.
The Rev. David Barr of Ballater stated that residents view the royals as neighbors.
“I feel that when she comes up here and passes through those gates, the majority of her regal persona remains outside,” he remarked. “As she entered, she was able to be a wife, a love wife, a loving mother, a loving grandmother, and subsequently a loving great-grandmother – and aunt – and still be normal.”
After the hearse carrying the queen’s coffin went through Ballater, Elizabeth Taylor from Aberdeen had tears in her eyes.
“It was quite emotional, respectful, and indicative of how they feel about the queen,” she said. Even up to a few days before her death, she was undoubtedly of value to this country.