As the glass hearse drove slowly toward Buckingham Palace, clapping could be heard from people lining the dark streets, many of whom held candles. The hearse was lit from within so that the coffin—draped in the royal standard and topped with lilies—made an eerie sight as it traveled toward the queen’s former home. Once it reached Buckingham Palace it was received by the queen’s four children: King Charles III, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward as well as their spouses, including Queen Consort Camilla. All of her grandchildren and their spouses were also present, including Prince William, Princess Kate, Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan. Earlier today Anne released a statement in which she said that she was “fortunate to share the last 24 hours of my dearest Mother’s life.” She went on, “It was an honour and a privilege to accompany her on her final journeys.” The statement was accompanied by a picture of the 72-year-old Princess Royal with her arm around the queen. The queen died at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, and briefly lay in state at St Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh. All four of her children took part in the Vigil of the Princes, a tradition that saw Charles, Anne, Andrew and Edward stand guard at her coffin for 10 minutes while crowds filed past to view the queen lying in state. Tonight the queen’s coffin will rest in the Bow Room in Buckingham Palace before being moved to the Palace of Westminster, where she will lie in state until her funeral on Monday. The queues of people waiting to view the coffin are expected to be 12 hours long at times. On the day of her funeral, 10 pallbearers will be entrusted with the immense weight of the queen’s coffin, lead-lined in the royal tradition (Princess Diana’s coffin weighed half a ton), for her funeral service in Westminster Abbey. After the funeral, the queen’s coffin will be taken to Windsor Castle—which earlier this year became her “forever home” after she left Buckingham Palace for good—where she will join her father King George VI, her mother Queen Elizabeth and her sister Princess Margaret in St George’s Chapel. Meanwhile her husband Prince Philip, who died last year, will be exhumed from the Royal Vault and laid to rest alongside his wife. Next up, See Prince Harry’s Heart-Wrenching Statement on the Death of the Queen
