Queen Elizabeth II’s flag-draped coffin is making its final journey from her favorite holiday residence Balmoral Castle to London on Sunday, with mourners quietly lining highways and some tossing flowers to honor the monarch who died after 70 years on the throne.
The hearse escorted a seven-car cortege from Balmoral, where the queen died on Thursday, 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.
“A sad and emotional moment as Her Majesty, The Queen, leaves her beloved Balmoral for the last time,” tweeted Nicola Sturgeon, the first minister of Scotland. “Today, when she travels to Edinburgh, Scotland will pay respect to a remarkable woman.”
As the nation mourns its longest-reigning king, the only one most Britons have ever known, crowds lined portions of the route. Hundreds of locals of the Scottish community of Ballater, who consider the royal family their neighbors, stood in silence and dropped flowers in front of the hearse as it passed.
“She meant so much to the residents of this region. People were crying, which was a sight to behold “The manager of a bed and breakfast, Victoria Pacheco, remarked this.
On Sunday, September 11, 2022, members of the public line the streets in Ballater, Scotland, as the hearse carrying Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin makes its way to Edinburgh from Balmoral, Scotland. Scott Heppell / AP
In each city and town the automobiles passed through, they were greeted with similarly subdued displays of respect. People stood fairly silently, but some applauded courteously and others pointed their cell phone photos at the passing vehicles.
Before reaching the Scottish capital, the cortege is passing through locations steeped in House of Windsor history, such as Dyce, where the queen formally opened the United Kingdom’s first North Sea oil pipeline in 1975, and Fife near St. Andrews University, where her grandson William, now the Prince of Wales, studied and met his future wife Catherine.
The solemn drive through Scotland on Sunday follows the formal proclamation of the queen’s eldest son as the next monarch, King Charles III, in a ceremony steeped in historical custom and political symbolism.
As he assumed the role of monarch, Charles declared, “I am acutely aware of this enormous heritage and the obligations and weighty responsibilities of sovereignty, which have now been transferred to me.”
On Sunday, he will be declared king in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, as well as in cities across the United Kingdom. Previously, proclamations were held in other areas of the Commonwealth, including Australia and New Zealand. The Commonwealth is the group of former British Empire colonies.
In Wellington, the capital of New Zealand, the representative of the British monarch, Governor-General Dame Cindy Kiro, stated, “On behalf of all New Zealanders, I wish King Charles a long and prosperous reign.”
While Charles lamented the loss of his mother, he continued to work. He was meeting at Buckingham Palace with the secretary-general and other representatives of the Commonwealth, a group of nations that grapples with affection for the queen and lingering resentment over their own colonial legacies, including slavery, corporal punishment in African schools, and looted artifacts held in British institutions.
After the May elections, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese began building the basis for an Australian republic. However, Albanese stated on Sunday that now is not the time for change, but rather for paying honor to the late queen.
All government buildings in India, a former British colony, lowered their flags to half-staff for a day of national mourning.
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 casket will return to the capital via a convoluted route. It will be transferred from Holyroodhouse to the neighboring St. Giles’ Cathedral on Monday, where it will remain until Tuesday, when it will be flown to London. Wednesday, the casket will be transferred from Buckingham Palace to the Houses of Parliament, where it will lay in state until the state burial at Westminster Abbey on September 19.
In Ballater, the Rev. David Barr stated that people saw the royals as “neighbors” and treat them as such when they spend the summers in the Scottish Highlands.
“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 loving wife, a loving mother, a loving grandmother, and subsequently a love great-grandmother — and auntie — 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 emotionally charged. It was respectful and demonstrated their regard for the queen “she stated. She served her country until a few days prior to her passing.
Princess Elizabeth
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