WINDSOR, England —
Queen Elizabeth will bid a final farewell
to
Prince Philip, her husband of more than seven decades, at a ceremonial
funeral on Saturday, with the nation set to hold a minute's silence to mark the
passing of a pivotal figure in the British monarchy.
اضافة اعلان
The coffin of Philip, who died aged 99 on April 9 at Windsor
Castle, will be driven to the funeral at St George's Chapel in the castle on a
specially modified Land Rover.
Prince Charles, heir to the throne, and Philip's other three
children will walk behind in procession. Prince William and his brother Prince
Harry - who has returned from the United States to attend - will walk separated
by their cousin Peter Phillips.
The queen, who says the death has left a huge void, will be
driven behind in the State Bentley. In the service, which starts at 3 pm (1400
GMT), the 94-year-old monarch will stand alone due to COVID-19 restrictions as
her husband's coffin is lowered into the Royal Vault of the ancient chapel.
"She's the queen, she will behave with the
extraordinary dignity and extraordinary courage that she always does. And at
the same time, she is saying farewell to someone to who she was married for 73
years," said Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, who will help
officiate at the service.
Philip, who married Elizabeth in 1947, helped the young
queen adapt the monarchy to the changing world of the post-World War Two era as
the loss of empire and the decline of deference challenged the world's most
prominent royal family.
She has now been widowed just as she grapples with one of
the gravest crises to hit the royal family in decades - allegations of racism
and neglect by it from her grandson Harry and his American-born wife Meghan.
Attention on Harry
Much media attention will focus on the royals' behavior
towards Harry as he makes his first public appearance with the family since the
couple gave an explosive interview to Oprah Winfrey last month.
In the interview they accused one unnamed royal of making a
racist comment, and said Meghan's pleas for help when she felt suicidal were
ignored.
The couple, who moved to Los Angeles and quit royal duties
last year, laid bare their perceptions of the family's attitudes in what
amounted to a critique of the old-fashioned customs of an ancient institution.
Meghan said she had been silenced by "the Firm"
while Harry said his father, Charles, had refused to take his calls. Harry said
both Charles and his brother William were trapped in the royal family.
Meghan, who is pregnant, will not attend Saturday's funeral
as her doctor has advised against it, Buckingham Palace said.
Mourners will eschew the tradition of wearing military
uniforms, a step newspapers said was to prevent embarrassment to Harry, who
despite serving two tours in Afghanistan during his army career, is not be
entitled to wear a uniform because he was stripped of his honorary military
titles.
"We're not going to be drawn into those perceptions of
drama, or anything like that," a Buckingham Palace spokesman said.
"This is a funeral. The arrangements have been agreed, and they represent
her majesty's wishes."
Prince Andrew, who stepped down from public duties in 2019
over controversy surrounding his what he termed his "ill-judged"
association with late US financier Jeffrey Epstein, had wanted to wear an
admiral's uniform at the funeral, British media reported.
Queen alone
The palace has emphasized that while the occasion will have
the due pageantry that marks the passing of a senior royal, it remains an
occasion for a mourning family to mark the passing of a husband, father,
grandfather and great-grandfather.
There will be just 30 mourners inside the chapel for the
service because of COVID-19 restrictions.
Archbishop Welby, leader of the worldwide Anglican
Communion, said he expected the funeral to resonate with the millions of people
around the world who have lost loved ones during the pandemic.
Philip's dedication to his duty earned him widespread
popularity in Britain, but he was also criticized by some for a number of off-the-cuff
racist or abrupt comments which shocked princes, priests and presidents.
"He was authentically himself, with a seriously sharp
wit, and could hold the attention of any room due to his charm and also because
you never knew what he might say next," Harry said of his grandfather.
British television stations have cleared their schedules to
show the funeral and millions are due to watch, though there have been over
100,000 complaints to the British Broadcasting Corporation over its blanket
coverage since Philip died.
Philip was a decorated Royal Navy veteran of World War Two
and his funeral, much of which was planned in meticulous detail by the prince
himself, will have a strong military feel, with personnel from across the armed
forces playing prominent roles.
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