After a sombre procession bringing Her Majesty’s casket through quiet Edinburgh streets thronged with mourners, headed by a bereaved King Charles III and his grieving siblings, tens of thousands of Britons have started to pay their respects to the Queen.
Respectful admirers lined up at St. Giles’ Cathedral on the Royal Mile to pay their respects to Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, whose remains will repose there for 24 hours before being taken to London tomorrow in preparation for the royal burial on September 19 at Westminster Abbey.
After meeting with First Minister Nicola Sturgeon at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the King and Queen Consort arrived to the Scottish Parliament at approximately 5.45 p.m.
The Queen’s successor will accept a motion of condolence before joining his siblings, the Duke of York, the Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, and the Earl and Countess of Wessex, for a vigil in memory of the late monarch.
The Prince of Wales and the Duke of Sussex are not anticipated to be present for tonight’s event.
The line was headed by George Higgins, a former Scots Guards soldier, and hundreds of well-wishers lined George IV Bridge behind him. After finishing an overnight duty as a security guard at the University of Edinburgh, the 61-year-old had been in line since 7 am.
I’ve been here since 6.45 a.m.; I came right here after working a night shift. I brought my work clothes, changed, and then came right here. I have to work again at 9.30 p.m. tonight, so I’ll be exhausted. But it’s worthwhile; the least I can do is give her a few days of my time to say goodbye after everything that she has done for the nation, for us, for the people, and for the Commonwealth.
“To be here is a true honour.” I can’t believe I came in first place. Actually, I need to pinch myself. Just good luck.
As King Charles led senior royals in a solemn military procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse, where the late monarch’s body had been resting overnight after the 180-mile drive from Balmoral yesterday, to the cathedral, hundreds of thousands of Scots had earlier crammed into Edinburgh’s narrow streets to catch a glimpse of the Queen’s coffin.
The King marched gravely behind the Queen along the Royal Mile of the Scottish capital, followed by his younger brothers and sister. The arrival of the hearse caused the gathering well-wishers to pause.
As the cortège drew near, the audience spontaneously rose to its feet and cheered, with many yelling “God Save the King!” and “God Save the Queen!”
The King, his wife the Queen Consort, the Princess Royal, her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, the Duke of York, and the Earl and Countess of Wessex all followed as Her Majesty’s coffin was lifted out of the hearse and brought into the place of worship about 30 minutes after the Queen arrived there.
A wreath of flowers made up of white Spray Roses, white Freesias, white button chrysanthemums, dried white heather from Balmoral, spray eryngium, greenery, rosemary, hebe, and pittosporum was put on the casket before the Crown of Scotland, which was constructed in 1540 for King James V, was set on it.
The Guard of Honour and Band met the procession before it entered the cathedral, while the High Constables and the Baillie’s Guard were stationed under the Colonnade. The band played one line of the national anthem as the guard of honour saluted and the casket came.
The bearer party then assumed its flanking position after being located by the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The King’s Body Guard for Scotland located the escort party, which was followed by royal automobiles accompanied by members of the royal family. They moved toward the back of the procession and took up positions close to the hearse.
A shrouded and muffled pipe band with drums escorted the guard of honour.
During the national anthem, the audience outside the cathedral joined in with the congregation, with some chanting God Save the King and others God Save the Queen.
At the conclusion of the hour-long ceremony, many of those present broke into spontaneous applause.
As King Charles exited the church in a waiting automobile, there was further cheering.
The King, the Queen Consort, the Princess Royal, her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, the Duke of York, the Earl and the Countess of Wessex, and others followed the casket as it was hoisted out of the hearse and carried into the house of worship.
The choir sang Thou Wilt Keep Him In Perfect Peace, whose Mind Is Stayed On Thee as the casket moved through the church.
The assembly stood as the Queen’s casket was put on a wooden catafalque.
The royal family members, including the King, Queen Consort, and others, then made their way to their places next to the casket.
The Duke of York is on the King’s right, while his wife is to his left.
Reverend Calum MacLeod greeted the royal family at the start of the ceremony, calling them “representatives of our nation’s life” and “those whose lives were touched by the Queen in so many unique ways.”
“And so, we assemble to say Scotland’s late king goodbye. We honour his life of service to the country and the globe,” he remarked.
And his affection for Scotland was renowned.
Hundreds of thousands of people lined the streets of the Scottish capital today as the Queen’s coffin travelled to St. Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh, followed by her four children. The ceremony was marked by the sound of cannon salutes fired from the city’s castle.
Her Majesty was brought from the Palace of Holyroodhouse, where she had been resting after a six-hour trip from her residence in Aberdeenshire yesterday, led by a lone piper from Balmoral playing a lament.
King Charles, who was obviously moved, and his siblings, Anne, the Princess Royal, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward, marched sadly for 1,200 yards behind their cherished mother as the national anthem played as the coffin was tenderly put into the hearse.
The Duke of York, who had lost his titles as a result of the Epstein affair, was not wearing a military uniform like his brothers. He received a little jeering during the march. According to Police Scotland, a 22-year-old male was taken into custody.
The Queen was carried through the streets to the cathedral, where her family and a congregation from all facets of Scottish society attended a liturgy of gratitude for her life. Hundreds of thousands lined the streets and cheered.
As the Queen’s funeral procession started its ascent of the Royal Mile, bagpipes playing from Holyrood Palace performed the National Anthem.
A Bearer Party composed of members of the Royal Regiment of Scotland and the King’s Body Guard for Scotland accompanied the hearse.
In ceremonial attire, mounted cops rode in front of the procession.
The King visited with well-wishers earlier today in an unscheduled walkabout as Scotland’s capital, Edinburgh, greeted the new king and mourned the Queen. Police had to turn away several attendees due to the large number of people who turned out to meet the King.
Senior church authorities waited quietly at the church’s entrance as the procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse moved along the Royal Mile.
During the mournful march, crowds gathered 10 thick along the winding streets of the old town while others took up positions in nearby windows.
As two police officers on horses announced the approach of the Queen’s corpse, the military saluted.
As the hearse pulled up to the famous site of worship, all four of the Queen’s children, headed by the future King Charles, followed closely behind.
There was also Princess Anne’s husband present.
The Queen Consort, Sophie, the spouse of Prince Edward, and Camilla arrived in a subsequent automobile.
“We thank you for the profound affection she has inspired in all her subjects, for the many ways she has met and welcomed people from all walks of life, for the diplomacy with which she has settled disputes, and for the stability she has provided to her kingdoms and to the Commonwealth.”
Near the conclusion of the ceremony, the national song, God Save The King, was sung.
As they stood next to the King in front of the late Queen’s coffin, the Queen Consort, Duke of York, Earl of Wessex, Princess Royal, and her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence were heard singing.
Before the casket is transported to London to lay in state, members of the public will have a 24-hour window to pay their respects.
The Vigil of the Princes will be performed by the King and his siblings at 7:20 p.m. Tomorrow night’s flight to London with Princess Anne and her mother in the coffin is anticipated.
The casket will be transported to the State Hearse at 6.55 p.m. after arriving at RAF Northolt in west London. A guard of honour will welcome the casket at Buckingham Palace.
It will be carried by a bearer party from the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards to the Bow Room where it will be set up on trestles in front of King Charles and the Queen Consort. The casket will be watched over by chaplains to the king.
After speaking to MPs and peers for the first time and telling them he could “feel the weight of history” on his shoulders after their own tributes to his cherished mother the Queen, King Charles III seemed on the verge of tears as Parliament sang “God Save the King” today.
As the Lord Speaker and the Commons Speaker offered their sympathies and added, “Deep as our sadness is, we know yours is deeper,” His Majesty likewise seemed saddened.
The King acknowledged the hundreds of MPs and peers who had paid homage to his mother during his speech to the gathering gathered in Westminster Hall, including Liz Truss, Sir Keir Starmer, and Boris Johnson.
As he addressed Parliament for the first time as king, Charles paid homage to his “loving mother” by quoting Shakespeare. He stated of the Queen: “As Shakespeare said of the former Queen Elizabeth, she was a pattern to all princes living.”
As he addressed you, he added, “I cannot help but feel the weight of history that surrounds us and serves as a reminder of the fundamental legislative traditions to which members of both Houses devote yourself with such personal dedication, for the welfare of us all.”
With God’s assistance and your advice, Charles said that the late Queen had “established an example of selfless responsibility that I am committed faithfully to follow.”
“I am extremely thankful for sympathy letters, which so beautifully capture what late sovereign loving mother meant to all of us,” he said.
Following that, the hundreds of dignitaries rose for the national song, which brought tears to the eyes of the new King on the day when he would be seen in public with the Queen’s coffin for the first time in Scotland.
After noon, King Charles and the Queen Consort will arrive by plane in the Scottish capital and go to the palace to see a guard of honour. After their shocking reunion outside Windsor Castle on Saturday, Prince William, Prince Harry, and their spouses Kate and Meghan are rumoured to be there as well. The King follows the hearse to St. Giles’ Cathedral, where he will be seen for the first time with his mother’s coffin.
Charles and Camilla will walk the 1,200 yards to St. Giles’ Cathedral in a procession at 2.35 p.m. The hearse will go down the Royal Mile with Charles and other royals following behind it.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and the new Prince and Princess of Wales, who on Saturday put on an unified face at an appearance at Windsor Castle, are said to be among the royal mourners, but full details about the group have not yet been made public.
The Duke of York, the Earl of Wessex, the Princess Royal, and her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence are anticipated to be among the royals Charles will lead on foot. The Queen Consort and other members of the royalty will follow in automobiles.
The casket will be covered with the Scottish Crown at the church. The general public is welcome to pay their respects after a service by making their way by.
The Vigil of the Princes will be performed by the King and his siblings at 7:20 p.m. Tomorrow night’s flight to London with Princess Anne and her mother in the coffin is anticipated.
The casket will be transported to the State Hearse at 6.55 p.m. after arriving at RAF Northolt in west London. A guard of honour will welcome the casket at Buckingham Palace.
It will be carried by a bearer party from the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards to the Bow Room where it will be set up on trestles in front of King Charles and the Queen Consort. The casket will be watched over by chaplains to the king.
Yesterday, when members of the royal family saw Queen Elizabeth II’s casket arrive in Edinburgh to spend the night in repose at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the Countess of Wessex was seen consoling Princess Anne.
After the coffin arrived in the Scottish city from Balmoral, Sophie, the wife of the Queen’s youngest son Prince Edward, 58, was shown putting her hand on the Princess Royal’s back in a show of solidarity.
The Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, the Duke and Duchess of York, and the Earl and Countess of Wessex, together with other members of the Queen’s family, observed as troops from the Royal Regiment of Scotland brought the coffin inside the Palace.
In a beautiful gesture, the men and ladies of the royal family also bowed their heads in respect for the king.
During the 180-mile trip, Her Majesty was not alone; Anne and her husband were riding in a limousine behind her as part of a parade.
The Queen will spend the night at the palace before being taken to St. Giles’ Cathedral tomorrow afternoon. Earlier, a sizable throng had assembled to see King Charles be proclaimed as head of state at noon.
Princess Anne and Sophie, along with other members of the royal family, yesterday seemed teary-eyed as they saw flower offerings made to the Queen at Balmoral.
As Her Majesty departed Balmoral for the last time, hundreds of Scottish mourners lined the path of her funeral procession as a mark of respect for her.
Well-wishers gathered beside rural roads, bridges, and in village and city centres to bid the lady farewell. She was never more at home than when she was in Scotland.
After more than six hours, the procession finally arrived at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh. By this time, the throngs on the famed Royal Mile, a street the Queen was well acquainted with, were at times ten deep.
As the procession drew to a close, flowers from William Purvis, a family-run funeral home located in Scotland, were tossed in front of the hearse, and parts of the spectators on the Royal Mile spontaneously applauded.
A single long-stemmed flower was seen on the hearse windshield at one point as the cortege passed through Dundee, while in a rural area of the route, farmers honoured the Queen by lining up tractors in a field.
Yesterday, a lone police motorcycle outrider followed the hearse as it made its way through the Aberdeenshire countryside at a leisurely speed. A single long-stemmed flower was seen on the hearse windshield at one point as the cortege passed through Dundee, while in a rural area of the route, farmers honoured the king with tractors parked in a row.
The Queen’s coffin was carefully driven along the main street of Ballater, the charming Victorian town nearest to the Balmoral estate, where many considered her a neighbour. Her Majesty and her family were often seen at the Royal Deeside hamlet that she had frequented since she was a little kid and where the Royal Family is allowed to be themselves.
Following the announcement of the Queen’s passing, the Rev. David Barr rung the church bells at Glenmuick Church 70 times.
On both sides of the gloomy, quiet road in Ballater, sympathisers threw flowers into the path of the funeral. The coffin was draped in the royal flag and the wreath was made of flowers from the Balmoral estate, including sweet peas, one of the Queen’s favourite flowers, dahlias, phlox, white heather, and pine fir. As the hearse slowed to a quick walking speed, mourners could plainly see the corpse.
Just after 10 o’clock in the morning, the Queen’s last voyage through the Scottish Highlands started, and First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon paid homage to her.
A sad and moving moment as Her Majesty, The Queen departs her beloved Balmoral for the last time, Ms. Sturgeon said in a tweet. Scotland paid tribute to an extraordinary woman yesterday as she travelled to Edinburgh.
From the Queen’s summer retreat in the Highlands, the Queen’s oak coffin set out for Ballater, where it arrived first, draped with the Royal Standard of Scotland and topped with a wreath of Balmoral flowers.
The Queen was regarded as a neighbour by the people of Ballater because she and her family were frequently spotted in the village in Royal Deeside, which she had frequented since she was a young child and where the royal family has room to be themselves.
For the tens of thousands who flocked to the streets yesterday to see the Queen’s final journey, her impending death became a stark reality.
After Her Majesty made her final departure from her beloved Balmoral, many had travelled through the night to reserve their spots along the route.
As the Queen’s oak coffin, wrapped in the Royal Standard of Scotland, reached the destination of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, there was a mournful atmosphere.
As the Queen’s coffin was gently driven along the village’s main street, hundreds of people lined the roadway, and many businesses honoured the Queen by hanging pictures of her in their windows.
Following the announcement of the Queen’s passing, the Rev. David Barr rung the church bells at Glenmuick Church 70 times.
Mourners could see the coffin, which was draped in the royal flag and adorned with flowers from the Balmoral estate, including sweet peas, one of the Queen’s favourite flowers, dahlias, phlox, white heather, and pine fir, plainly when the vehicle slowed to a quick walking speed.
Aberdeen native Elizabeth Taylor was in tears as she processed what she had just witnessed.
It was quite emotional, she remarked. It was courteous and conveyed their feelings for the Queen. Even a few days before to her passing, she undoubtedly rendered service to our nation.
Andrew Brown, a 63-year-old Royal admirer, saw the hearse as it moved slowly along the Royal Mile and commented, “This has brought it all home.” I believe that seeing the casket and the cortege with my own eyes gives it more of a reality. I had been in a bit of a state of shock and numbness.
The Glasgow resident, Mr. Scott, said, “It’s a sad day, but I’m pleased I had a chance to say goodbye. Given how much the Queen adored Scotland, I believe it is appropriate that her last voyage started in Balmoral.
Ashley Coventry, an Edinburgh-based hairdresser, said: “It simply seems strange.” I believe we all anticipated its arrival. But it’s also the realisation that this place is a mark of history. The quantity of people here astounds me. People have come from a great distance and from everywhere.
It’s simply a steady stream of people, Ashley, who was there with her daughter Hannah, 9, and husband Scott, 39, said. Scott said: “The Queen was deeply liked in our home and it’s a really sad day. I’ve never seen anything like that.
Lynda Amos, 69, and her husband Richard, 67, described how they took a detour from their vacation in the Scottish Highlands to pay their respects in Edinburgh. The couple resides in Duns in the Scottish Borders, 50 miles south of the national centre.
“We came straight here,” Lynda said. We’re heartbroken. We had just recently seen photos of her meeting Liz Truss, so it came as quite a shock to us. Although it is very sad, a fresh beginning has also begun. Their lives have always included the Queen. When her father passed away, my father—a member of the Royal Air Force—was in Kenya, where the Queen was vacationing. When Elizabeth returned to Britain to become Queen, they all gathered to the airport and stood at attention.
We’ve attended a few of the garden parties here. On her way up to Balmoral every year, the Queen would stop over to host them. She would really try, and everyone would be dressed up. She was wonderful.
“Being here makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up,” said chartered surveyor Richard.
It happens after King Charles was welcomed by countless well-wishers as he arrived at Buckingham Palace to meet with Commonwealth officials.
Around 1pm, crowds lined The Mall, cheering and waving as Britain’s new monarch was driven through the Palace gates in his state Rolls-Royce, followed by a motorcade of four cars and four police motorcycles. The crowds included excited young children sitting on top of parents’ shoulders and trying to take photos with their phones.
The King was greeted by mourners as he entered Buckingham Palace, followed shortly after by his wife Camilla, Queen Consort.
Yesterday at 2pm, Charles met with Patricia Scotland, the general secretary of the Commonwealth, in the 1844 Room before going to the Bow Room of the royal residence for a reception with the high commissioners and their spouses from nations where he is the head of state. The Dean of Windsor was then met by the King, who was yesterday officially proclaimed in St. James’s Palace.
Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, the Antigua and Barbuda Commissioner (whose republican Prime Minister has threatened a referendum on leaving the Crown), the Honorary Consul of Tuvalu, the Acting High Commissioner for Australia, and representatives from the Bahamas, Belize, Canada, Grenada, New Zealand, St. Christopher and Nevis, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines were among the guests.
Following his late mother’s passing at Balmoral on Thursday at the age of 96, the King and Queen will travel to each of the four home countries the following week in preparation for her state funeral at Westminster Abbey and burial at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor.