EDINBURGH, Scotland: As Queen Elizabeth II’s 4 youngsters walked silently behind, a hearse carried her flag-draped coffin alongside a crowd-lined avenue within the Scottish capital Monday to a cathedral, the place a service of thanksgiving hailed the late monarch as a “fixed in all of our lives for over 70 years.”
4 days after the 96-year-old queen died at her beloved Balmoral Citadel within the Scottish Highlands, a navy bagpiper performed as her oak coffin, draped within the royal commonplace, was borne from the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh below late-summer sunshine.

King Charles III, wearing military uniform, and Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward walked behind because the hearse traveled to St. Giles’ Cathedral, flanked by a bearer social gathering of the Royal Regiment of Scotland and a detachment of The King’s Physique Guard in Scotland, the Royal Firm of Archers.
As soon as inside St. Giles, the coffin was positioned on a wood stand an topped with the golden Crown of Scotland, encrusted with 22 gems and 20 valuable stones together with freshwater pearls from Scotland’s rivers.
“And so we collect to bid Scotland’s farewell to our late monarch, whose lifetime of service to the nation and the world we have fun. And whose love for Scotland was legendary,” mentioned the Rev. Calum MacLeod.

As a result of the queen died at Balmoral, Scotland has been the main focus of the world’s consideration for the primary a part of Britain’s 10 days of nationwide mourning. Scenes of huge crowds lining the route that her coffin journeyed south have underscored the deep bond between the queen and Scotland, which persevered whilst relations between the Conservative UK authorities in London and the pro-independence administration in Edinburgh have soured.
In a homily, Church of Scotland Moderator Iain Greenshields mentioned that “most of us can not recall a time when she was not our monarch.
“Dedicated to the position she assumed in 1952 upon the demise of her beloved father, she has been a relentless in all of our lives for over 70 years,” he mentioned. “She was decided to see her work as a type of service to others, and he or she maintained that regular course till the tip of her life.
The coffin will stay on the cathedral till Tuesday so members of the general public pays their respects. 1000’s lined the 0.7-mile (1 kilometer) route between palace and cathedral, some arriving hours forward of the service to catch a glimpse of the coffin.

“I simply wished to be right here, simply to point out … final respects. I can not imagine she is lifeless,” mentioned Marilyn Mclear, a 70-year-old retired instructor. “I do know she was 96, however I simply can not imagine the queen’s lifeless.”
One man appeared to shout angrily on the passing hearse, whereas others known as out: “God save the king!” However the procession was greeted largely with a respectful silence below a blue sky flecked with white clouds.
Charles, Anne and Edward all wore navy uniforms in the course of the procession, however Andrew didn’t. The Royal Navy veteran was stripped of his honorary navy titles and was eliminated as a working royal over his friendship with the infamous US intercourse offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Earlier, in London, Charles acquired condolences at Parliament and instructed lawmakers he would observe his late mom’s instance of “selfless responsibility.”

The queen’s grandson, Prince Harry, hailed her as a “guiding compass” and praised her “unwavering grace and dignity.”
The federal government, in the meantime, introduced the nation will observe a minute of silence on Sunday, the night earlier than the queen’s funeral. The “second of reflection” will happen at 8 p.m. (1900 GMT, 3 p.m. EDT). Individuals had been inspired to mark the silence at dwelling or at group occasions.
Tons of of lawmakers crowded into the 1,000-year-old Westminster Corridor on the Homes of Parliament for the service, wealthy in pageantry, wherein Parliament supplied its condolences to the king. A trumpet fanfare greeted him and Camilla as they entered.
Charles instructed members of the Home of Commons and Home of Lords that he would observe his late mom in upholding “the valuable ideas of constitutional governance” that underpin the UK’s political system.

The corridor, with its magnificent hammer-beam roof, is the oldest a part of the parliamentary complicated — a remnant of the medieval Palace of Westminster that after stood on the location.
“As I stand earlier than you at the moment, I can not assist however really feel the load of historical past which surrounds us and which reminds us of the very important parliamentary traditions to which members of each Homes dedicate yourselves, with such private dedication for the betterment of us all,” Charles mentioned.
The ceremony was held in Westminster Corridor as a result of monarchs aren’t allowed contained in the Home of Commons. That rule dates from the seventeenth century, when King Charles I attempted to enter and arrest lawmakers. That confrontation between crown and Parliament led to a civil warfare which ended with the king being beheaded in 1649.

Earlier Monday, a private assertion posted on Harry and his spouse Meghan’s Archwell web site mentioned he cherished their occasions collectively “from my earliest childhood recollections with you, to assembly you for the primary time as my Commander-in-Chief, to the primary second you met my darling spouse and hugged the one you love greatgrandchildren.”
Amid acrimony within the Home of Windsor, Harry stop as a senior royal and moved to the US two years in the past. On Saturday, there was a potential signal of a reconciliation as Harry and Meghan joined his brother Prince William and sister-in-law Catherine in assembly mourners exterior Windsor Citadel.
The queen’s coffin shall be flown Tuesday to London, the place it can lie in state on the Homes of Parliament Palace from Wednesday afternoon till the morning of the funeral on Sept. 19.
Authorities have already got issued guidelines and tips for folks desirous to pay their respects in London, with a protracted queue anticipated.
After visiting Scotland, Charles embarks on a tour of the opposite nations that make up the UK — he visits the Northern Eire capital, Belfast, on Tuesday and Wales on Friday.
Harry’s assertion ended on a poignant notice alluding to the demise final yr of his grandfather, Prince Philip, saying that “We, too, smile realizing that you just and grandpa are reunited now, and each collectively in peace.”