Queen hailed in Scotland as ‘constant in all our lives’

As Queen Elizabeth II’s four children walked quietly behind them, a hearse carried the flag-draped coffin along the crowd-lined streets of the Scottish capital to the cathedral on Monday. Live for over 70 years. ”

Four days after the 96-year-old Queen died at Balmoral Castle in the Scottish Highlands, a military bagpiper played as an oak coffin dressed in the red and yellow royal standards of Scotland was brought from Edinburgh’s Palace of Holyroodhouse. I was. in a solemn procession.

King Charles III and his brothers Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward, all dressed in army uniform, walked behind the hearse as it headed for St. Giles Cathedral. Archer’s company, the ceremonial bodyguard of the King of Scotland.

Inside the church, the coffin was placed on a wooden platform and topped with a Scottish golden crown encrusted with 22 precious stones and 20 precious stones along with freshwater pearls from Scottish rivers. rice field.

“And we came together to say goodbye to Scotland to the late monarch, celebrating a life of service to country and the world. And his love for Scotland was legendary,” said Callum. Reverend MacLeod said.

Scotland has been taking the world’s attention in the first part of Britain’s ten days of national mourning, as the Queen died at her summer home in Balmoral. As her coffin traveled from the castle to Edinburgh, crowds of people lined up, underscoring the deep bond between the Queen and Scotland. That bond continued even as relations between the British Conservative government in London and the independent Scottish government in Edinburgh soured.

Church of Scotland moderator Iin Greenshields said, “Most of us can’t remember a time when she wasn’t a monarch.”

“Dedicated to the role she took over after the death of her beloved father in 1952, it has been constant in our lives for more than 70 years,” he said. was determined to see it as a form of service to others.”

The coffin will remain in the cathedral until Tuesday so that the public can pay their respects. Thousands of people lined up for his 1 km (0.7 mile) route between the palace and the cathedral, some arriving hours earlier for a glimpse.

“I just wanted to be here…to pay my last respects. I can’t believe she passed away,” said Marilyn McClear, a 70-year-old former teacher. “She knows she was 96, but she can’t believe the Queen is dead.”

One man cried out to a passing hearse, while the others shouted, “God save the king!” But the march was, for the most part, greeted with respectful silence under cloud-dotted blue skies.

Charles and his brothers then held a silent vigil at the church, standing alongside members of the Royal Company of Archers on all sides of their mother’s oak coffin and bowing. The public passed by when the

Charles, Anne, and Edward wore military uniforms, but Andrew did not. A Royal Navy veteran has been stripped of his honorary military titles and dismissed as active-duty royalty over his friendship with notorious US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Charles later wore the kilt during a visit to the Scottish Parliament, where he was received by Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon.

“The Queen, like many generations of our family, has found refuge and home in the hills of this land and in the hearts of its people,” Prince Charles told Scottish MPs.

Earlier, the Queen’s grandson, Prince Harry, praised her as a “guiding compass” and praised her for her “unwavering grace and dignity.”

Meanwhile, the government has announced that the public will observe a moment of silence on Sunday, the night before the Queen’s funeral.

Before flying to Scotland, Charles offered his condolences to parliament on Monday, telling lawmakers he would follow the example of his late mother’s “selfless duty”.

Hundreds of MPs flocked to the 1,000-year-old Westminster Hall as Parliament paid their respects to the King. A fanfare of trumpets greeted him and his Queen Camilla.

Prince Charles has told the House of Commons and the House of Lords that he will follow in his late mother’s footsteps by upholding the “valuable principles of constitutional governance” that underpin the British political system.

“As I stand before you today, I can’t help but feel the weight of history. It’s a reminder of an important congressional tradition of commitment and dedication,” Charles said.

The ceremony was held at Westminster Hall. This is because monarchs have not been allowed inside the House of Commons since Charles I attempted to enter and arrest members of parliament. The conflict led to a civil war that ended with the beheading of the king in 1649.

In a personal tribute to his grandmother, Prince Harry said, “From my childhood memories with you, to the first time I met you as my commander-in-chief, to the first time you met my beloved wife. Till the moment you cherished the time you spent together, hugging your beloved great-grandchild.

Harry stepped down as senior royal and emigrated to the United States two years ago as the Windsor family was at odds. On Saturday, Harry and his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, joined their brother Prince William and sister-in-law Catherine, Princess of Wales, for a meeting with mourners outside Windsor Castle, raising the possibility of reconciliation. There were signs of

Harry’s statement implies that his grandfather, Prince Philip, passed away last year.

The Queen’s coffin will be flown to London on Tuesday and will rest in the Houses of Parliament from Wednesday afternoon until the morning of the funeral on September 19. Worship at Westminster Abbey.

Authorities have already issued rules for those who want to pay their respects in London.

Vanessa Nathakumaran showed up over two days early to stake out the site. “I really, really want to be a part of that,” she said.

Judging by the size of the Edinburgh crowd, the line behind Natakumaran would be long.

67-year-old Rosamund Allen has made history by coming to Edinburgh from Rothbury in the north of England.

“It was very moving. It was very quiet,” she said. They are very brave to do it. And I really hope that they can take something from today and have a chance to mourn themselves.

“They were so kind to let us be part of their grief.”