Death of Elizabeth II: this is how the body of the queen is transferred to give her the last goodbye

Thousands of Scots paid a last tribute to Elizabeth II this Sunday at the step of coffin which transports the deceased through the Scottish countryside she loved so much, on a six-hour journey.

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The coffin of the oldest monarch in the United Kingdom left the ballroom of his beloved first Balmora Castlel, where he died Thursday at the age of 96, carried by six guards to the hearse.

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The procession of seven cars left the gates of her summer residence shortly after 10 a.m. local time, passing by the mass of flowers deposited there since the death of the queen was announced, after 70 years and seven months in the throne.

“His Majesty selflessly gave us his life and time. Paying tribute to her in a traditional way was a way of thanking her for everything she did.Mark Lindley-Highfield, 47, dressed in a black tailcoat and top hat, explained at Balmoral.

At the gates of Balmoral, hundreds of bouquets with roses, lilies, Scottish thistles and sunflowers, among other varieties, are interspersed with cards and gifts. “Thank you for being you,” reads a message deposited in the fragrant and colorful sea of flowers.

It’s really emotional. It’s great you come here so everyone can pay their respects.

Although the leading role returns to the deceased sovereign after the proclamation of her son as the new King Carlos III, the reappearance together of princes William and Harry, next to their wives Catherine and Meghan, They graced the front page of the Sunday papers. “Reunited by sorrow”, headlined the ‘Sunday Telegraph’, along with an image of the two couples walking together in Windsor. The ‘Sunday Times’ specified that “long negotiations” were needed between the two couples, who are considered estranged, for that mediatic moment.

Since the sovereign’s death on Thursday when she was spending the summer at her private residence, The preparations to receive his coffin did not stop in Scotland, one of the four nations of the United Kingdom along with England, Wales and Northern Ireland. “It’s really emotional. It’s great that he comes here so that everyone can pay their respects (…), so that the Scots can say goodbye and say goodbye to their queen,” Paloma told ‘AFP’ the day before. in the capital of Scotland.

In the vicinity of the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the official residence of the kings in Scotland, gardeners were busy getting everything ready for when the coffin arrives.

(Can read: Prince William, with the challenge of assuming the future of the British crown).

Historic moment

A wide perimeter around the palace was closed to traffic, and in its surroundings Scots and visitors did not stop concentrating to deposit their flowers and other tributes.. “It’s so crazy to be able to experience this historic moment,” said Jake, 22.

Students and directors of the San Jorge school in England pay tribute to the death of Queen Elizabeth II. Bogota September 9, 2022.

Photo:

MAURICIO MORENO. TIME

The death of Elizabeth II after seven decades on the throne shocked the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth (Commonwealth of Nations) and the world. To the official protocol for the moment of her death, carefully elaborated for years under the code name “London Bridge”, special provisions had to be added since she died in Scotland, known as “Operation Unicorn”.

About 200 km separates the royal domain of Balmoral, in the cold Scottish north, from Edinburgh. But the royal procession will take about six hours to go through them because it will be making stops, in Aberdeen, Dundee, and its surroundings.

“The public will have the opportunity to view the royal hearse and pay their respects at civic events as it passes,” the Scottish Home Rule Government said. In Edinburgh, the sidewalks along the route were protected with barriers so that Scots and visitors can see the procession pass, which will enter from the north of the city to Holyroodhouse.

(In other news: Death of Elizabeth II: step by step, this will be the funeral of the queen of England).

The coffin will rest in the throne room of the palace, before being transferred on Monday to nearby Saint Giles Cathedral, where it will remain until a plane transports it to London on Tuesday, accompanied by his daughter Princess Anne.

‘Elizabeth the Great’

In the capital, the remains of the queen will be taken a day later in procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster, where it will remain on a purple catafalque to allow the British to say goodbye until the day of the state funeral.

The first state funeral since that of former Prime Minister Winston Churchill in 1965 will take place on September 19 before dozens of world leaders.like the American president, Joe Biden, and will attract millions of people.

The new 73-year-old monarch will begin his tour of the United Kingdom in Scotland on Monday to attend a condolence session in the Scottish Parliament, one of the emotional tributes that politicians have pronounced in recent days.

Elizabeth II “not only showed the world how to rule a people, but also how to give, how to love and how to serve,” said former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, for whom “it was that indomitability, that humor, that work ethic, that sense of of history that made her Elizabeth the Great”.

(Read: Meghan Markle, wife of Prince Harry, broke the royal mourning protocol)