People queue for hours to bid final farewell to Elizabeth II
18 September 2022 - 17:55
UPDATED 18 September 2022 - 23:00
byMichael Holden and William James
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Members of the public view the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, lying in state on the catafalque in Westminster Hall, at the Palace of Westminster, London, ahead of her funeral, September 18 2022. Picture: JACOB KING/REUTERS
US President Joe Biden paid an emotional tribute to Queen Elizabeth on the eve of her state funeral on Sunday, saying Britain and the world had been lucky to have such a dignified and dedicated servant on the throne for 70 years.
He and First Lady Jill Biden joined hundreds of thousands of people who have filed past the late British monarch as she lies in state.
“To all the people of England, all the people in UK, our hearts go out to you,” Biden said after he signed a book of condolence and visited her coffin in Westminster. “You were fortunate to have had her for 70 years, we all were. The world’s better for her.”
He said he had consoled the queen’s heir, King Charles, that the queen would be “with him every step of the way, every minute, every moment and that’s a reassuring notion”.
Biden and scores of other world leaders, including President Cyril Ramaphosa, and royals will attend the state funeral on Monday.
The queen’s body has been lying in state at the historic Westminster Hall since Wednesday. People from all walks of life and from around the world filed past in an emotional stream, many queuing overnight.
“Her legacy will loom large in the pages of British history, and in the story of our world,” Biden said in a message after news of the queen’s death on September 8 at the age of 96.
He was one of the 14 US presidents of her reign. Elizabeth met all except Lyndon Johnson, starting with Harry Truman in 1951 when she was still a princess.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who was seen curtsying at the coffin, are among dignitaries who have already paid their respects.
President Cyril Ramaphosa signs a book of condolence at Lancaster House in London, following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, September 18 2022. Picture: JONATHAN HORDLE/ REUTERS
“The sheer silence of that space is one of the things that makes it so moving,” Ardern said. She shared the moment with people who had queued for 20 hours or longer.
“The queen was here for her people, and now her people are there for her,” she told the BBC on Sunday.
Britain has hosted a series of poignant, carefully choreographed ceremonies in the 10 days after Elizabeth’s death, reflecting the traditions and pageantry of British royalty.
On Saturday night, the queen’s eight grandchildren, including Charles’s sons Princes William and Harry, held a solemn vigil at her coffin’s side, after a similar observance by her children the day before.
In a tribute to the late monarch on Sunday, Queen Consort Camilla, wife of the new king, said the late queen’s smile was “unforgettable”.
“She’s been part of our lives forever. I’m 75 now and I can’t remember anyone except the queen being there,” Camilla said. “She’s got those wonderful blue eyes, that when she smiles they light up her whole face. I will always remember her smile. That smile is unforgettable.”
A minute of national silence was held at 8pm on Sunday.
The funeral on Monday will be at Westminster Abbey in London, site of coronations, weddings and burials of English and then British kings and queens since William I in 1066.
London’s metropolitan police says the ceremony is the biggest security operation it has undertaken. Crowds of people were camping out to secure positions on the procession route.
About 500 guests from nearly 200 countries and territories will be among those attending, including presidents, prime ministers, kings, queens and sultans. Huge crowds are expected to throng the streets.
Britain has not held a state funeral on the scale planned for the queen since that for World War 2 leader Winston Churchill in 1965.
The government said big screens to watch the ceremony would be set up in Hyde Park in London and in cities across the country. The funeral will also be aired live by broadcasters.
Television ratings service Overnights.TV estimated that on the day of the queen’s death about 33-million people tuned in to the BBC and other channels carrying the news.
President of Tanzania Samia Suluhu Hassan signs a book of condolence at Lancaster House in London, following the death of Queen Elizabeth, September 18 2022. Picture: JONATHAN HORDLE/REUTERS
Such has been the desire to pay tribute to the popular monarch, the only one most Britons have known since her accession in 1952, that tens of thousands have waited patiently in the line queue along the River Thames to spend a few brief seconds at the side of her coffin.
“To think that everybody is there for one person, to mark what she has done for people and whatever way they felt she touched them or their country,” said Darren Luckhurst, a 49-year-old head teacher.
“Hats, gloves and I suppose camaraderie” helped him through the cold night, he said.
A decision on closing entry to the queue would be taken on Sunday, the government said. By the time her lying-in-state ends on Monday, as many as 750,000 may have filed past.
“She wouldn’t believe all this, she really wouldn’t,” Prince William said as he joined his father Charles in speaking to queuing mourners on Saturday. “It’s amazing.”
Update: September 18 2022 This story has been updated with Biden’s tribute.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
World leaders pay homage at queen’s coffin
People queue for hours to bid final farewell to Elizabeth II
US President Joe Biden paid an emotional tribute to Queen Elizabeth on the eve of her state funeral on Sunday, saying Britain and the world had been lucky to have such a dignified and dedicated servant on the throne for 70 years.
He and First Lady Jill Biden joined hundreds of thousands of people who have filed past the late British monarch as she lies in state.
“To all the people of England, all the people in UK, our hearts go out to you,” Biden said after he signed a book of condolence and visited her coffin in Westminster. “You were fortunate to have had her for 70 years, we all were. The world’s better for her.”
He said he had consoled the queen’s heir, King Charles, that the queen would be “with him every step of the way, every minute, every moment and that’s a reassuring notion”.
Biden and scores of other world leaders, including President Cyril Ramaphosa, and royals will attend the state funeral on Monday.
The queen’s body has been lying in state at the historic Westminster Hall since Wednesday. People from all walks of life and from around the world filed past in an emotional stream, many queuing overnight.
“Her legacy will loom large in the pages of British history, and in the story of our world,” Biden said in a message after news of the queen’s death on September 8 at the age of 96.
He was one of the 14 US presidents of her reign. Elizabeth met all except Lyndon Johnson, starting with Harry Truman in 1951 when she was still a princess.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who was seen curtsying at the coffin, are among dignitaries who have already paid their respects.
“The sheer silence of that space is one of the things that makes it so moving,” Ardern said. She shared the moment with people who had queued for 20 hours or longer.
“The queen was here for her people, and now her people are there for her,” she told the BBC on Sunday.
Britain has hosted a series of poignant, carefully choreographed ceremonies in the 10 days after Elizabeth’s death, reflecting the traditions and pageantry of British royalty.
On Saturday night, the queen’s eight grandchildren, including Charles’s sons Princes William and Harry, held a solemn vigil at her coffin’s side, after a similar observance by her children the day before.
In a tribute to the late monarch on Sunday, Queen Consort Camilla, wife of the new king, said the late queen’s smile was “unforgettable”.
“She’s been part of our lives forever. I’m 75 now and I can’t remember anyone except the queen being there,” Camilla said. “She’s got those wonderful blue eyes, that when she smiles they light up her whole face. I will always remember her smile. That smile is unforgettable.”
A minute of national silence was held at 8pm on Sunday.
The funeral on Monday will be at Westminster Abbey in London, site of coronations, weddings and burials of English and then British kings and queens since William I in 1066.
London’s metropolitan police says the ceremony is the biggest security operation it has undertaken. Crowds of people were camping out to secure positions on the procession route.
About 500 guests from nearly 200 countries and territories will be among those attending, including presidents, prime ministers, kings, queens and sultans. Huge crowds are expected to throng the streets.
Britain has not held a state funeral on the scale planned for the queen since that for World War 2 leader Winston Churchill in 1965.
The government said big screens to watch the ceremony would be set up in Hyde Park in London and in cities across the country. The funeral will also be aired live by broadcasters.
Television ratings service Overnights.TV estimated that on the day of the queen’s death about 33-million people tuned in to the BBC and other channels carrying the news.
Such has been the desire to pay tribute to the popular monarch, the only one most Britons have known since her accession in 1952, that tens of thousands have waited patiently in the line queue along the River Thames to spend a few brief seconds at the side of her coffin.
“To think that everybody is there for one person, to mark what she has done for people and whatever way they felt she touched them or their country,” said Darren Luckhurst, a 49-year-old head teacher.
“Hats, gloves and I suppose camaraderie” helped him through the cold night, he said.
A decision on closing entry to the queue would be taken on Sunday, the government said. By the time her lying-in-state ends on Monday, as many as 750,000 may have filed past.
“She wouldn’t believe all this, she really wouldn’t,” Prince William said as he joined his father Charles in speaking to queuing mourners on Saturday. “It’s amazing.”
Update: September 18 2022
This story has been updated with Biden’s tribute.
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