Queen Elizabeth's funeral was steeped in royal traditions that date back centuries, but for
most people now living, it was like nothing they'd ever seen before.
These were the moments we'll never forget.
At 6:30 am on September 19, 2022, Queen Elizabeth II's time lying in state came to an end.
As her coffin was being prepared for her funeral, another British institution, Big Ben, rang
its bells once a minute for 96 minutes.
"96 tolls of the bell for every year of the queen's long life."
Once that tribute was over, the queen's coffin was loaded onto the Royal Navy state funeral
gun carriage and pulled through the streets to Westminster Abbey where her state funeral
was held.
The use of the state funeral gun carriage was just the first in a slew of traditions
throughout the day.
Rather than being dragged by horses, the open wagon is pulled by dozens of members of the
Sovereign Guard, who, generally speaking, are less easily spooked by crowds and therefore
less likely to accidentally topple the coffin.
The procession was visually stunning.
The queen's coffin, which was covered in the vibrantly colored Royal Standard, was surrounded
not only by the members of the Royal Navy that were pulling the cart but also by members
of several other branches of the military and royal guards.
As Queen Elizabeth's coffin neared Westminster Abbey, members of the royal family joined
in the procession, walking just behind the gun carriage.
As expected, King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla led the charge.
Behind them were William, Prince of Wales, and Catherine, Princess of Wales.
The couple, who are now first in line to the throne, brought a pair of surprise guests:
their eldest son, Prince George, who is now second in line to the throne, and their daughter,
Princess Charlotte, now third in line.
Seeing as George is 9 and Charlotte is 7, the children weren't expected to be present
for the day's events.
As The Guardian reports, grandchildren and great-grandchildren usually don't have "a
formal role" in a monarch's funeral.
But due to the queen's unusually long reign and the monarchy's desire to project an air
of stability, it's not shocking that the family chose to break this particular tradition.
As the queen's state funeral drew to a close, trumpeters from the Queen's Household Cavalry
played the Last Post.
The short military fanfare dates back to the late 1700s and has a distinctly mournful quality
about it.
Typically, the tune is played on a bugle at significant funerals and on Remembrance Day,
the holiday that honors soldiers who have died in the line of duty.
In this context, iNews reported that it signified the fact that Queen Elizabeth's duties were
officially done and she could now rest in peace.
Following the song, the entire country observed a two-minute silence in memory of the monarch.
More typically, we're used to observing a single minute of silence; however, the extended
two-minute meditation isn't completely unprecedented.
In the U.K., two minutes of silence are observed, nationwide, every Remembrance Day.
It is thought that Buckingham Palace settled on two minutes instead of one as a tribute
to the queen's exceptionally long reign.
Whatever the reason, it was certainly memorable to see an entire country stop what they were
doing to honor the life of an individual who had dedicated hers to them.
To close Queen Elizabeth's state funeral, congregants sang the national anthem, "God
Save the King."
According to the royal family's website, the author of the anthem is anonymous, while the
anthem itself likely dates back to the 17th century.
That being said, the anthem has been performed slightly differently for the last 70 years,
with residents proclaiming their loyalty to a queen rather than a king.
This performance, then, marked the first time in nearly a century that the crown's subjects
had used the masculine title in the anthem.
Hearing the change seemed to have a profound effect on King Charles, as the monarch openly
grew teary-eyed as attendees sang.
Whether it was because he was mourning his personal loss or because the enormity of his
new role was finally sinking in, we can't be sure.
But it was a very humanizing moment for the leader, who, up to that point, had portrayed
the stereotypical stiff upper British lip when appearing in public.
Prior to that moment, the only other time that King Charles had hinted at his emotional
state was in his ascension speech when he said,
"I know how deeply you, the entire nation — and I think I may say the whole world
— sympathize with me in the irreparable loss we have all suffered."
As Queen Elizabeth's coffin departed Westminster Abbey for St. George's Chapel, attention turned
to the wreath that sat atop her coffin.
According to ABC News, it was King Charles who picked the flowers that were incorporated
in the wreath, and many of the included varieties had particular significance for both the queen
and her family.
Topping off the wreath was a handwritten note from King Charles that read,
"In loving and devoted memory.
Charles R."
The R, an official part of the King's new signature, stands for the Latin word Rex which
translates to King.
"I shall endeavor to serve you with loyalty, respect and love."
Nearly three hours after her state funeral ended, Queen Elizabeth II's coffin arrived
at Windsor Castle, which is her final resting place.
Hundreds of thousands of people lined the 20-mile route, hoping to catch a glimpse of
the specially designed hearse that carried the monarch and to witness a piece of history
firsthand.
But before she was interred in the King George VI Chapel, there was a committal service in
St. George's Chapel to be had.
This second service was significantly smaller than the first one, with only 800 guests,
primarily friends, family, and closer political allies, in attendance.
It was the last public farewell to the queen and an even more ceremonial event than the
morning's state funeral.
It was here that many of the traditions, like the requisition of the sovereign objects,
took place.
Queen Elizabeth's committal service was the first such service to be witnessed by the
general public.
The Dean of Windsor began the ceremony, praising the queen's "life of unstinting service" and
her steady demeanor.
He then went on to say:
"In the midst of our rapidly changing and frequently troubled world, her calm and dignified
presence has given us confidence to face the future, as she did, with courage and with
hope."
Queen Elizabeth II was a notorious animal lover, so it should come as no shock to royal
watchers that some of her pets were included in her funeral.
Two of the queen's beloved corgis, Muick and Sandy, gifts from her son Prince Andrew, awaited
her coffin in Windsor Castle's courtyard.
Over the course of her adult life, the queen owned around 30 corgis.
All of the corgis she bred were descendants of a pup named Susan, a dog that was given
to her by her parents on her 18th birthday.
In 2015, the monarch announced that she'd no longer be breeding new corgis, as she didn't
want to leave any behind when she died, but she apparently had a change of heart after
Prince Philip's death in 2021.
Muick and Sandy are byproducts of this change of heart and are now destined to live with
Prince Andrew, Duke of York, and Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York.
Also stationed along the parade route was the queen's favorite horse, a Fell pony named
Carltonlima Emma.
According to The Guardian, the monarch rode Emma well into her 90s and regularly visited
her even after she was unable to ride.
There's no official word as to what will happen to Emma now that the queen has died, but it
seems highly likely she'll simply continue to reside in the royal stables until the end
of her own life.
Near the end of Queen Elizabeth's committal service, the sovereign objects — the Imperial
State Crown, the orb, and the scepter — were removed from her possession for a final time.
The trio of objects had rested on top of the queen's coffin since she had been lying in
state and made the journey alongside her from Westminster Hall to Windsor Castle.
Each of the sovereign objects is historically significant.
To begin with, all three were given to the queen at her coronation ceremony in 1953.
But the orb and scepter are even older, having been made in 1661 and used in every coronation
since that of Charles II, some 360 years ago.
Additionally, the Imperial State Crown was made for the queen's father, King George VI,
to use during his 1937 coronation.
"Fortunately, my father and I have about the same sort of shaped head."
According to Historic Royal Palaces, the crown contains 2,868 diamonds, 17 sapphires, 11
emeralds, 269 pearls, and four rubies, making it one of the most priceless pieces of jewelry
on earth.
The removal of these objects, which was done by the royal jeweler, marked the official
end of the queen's reign.
They will now remain on the high altar in St. George's Chapel before being moved to
the Tower of London, where they will be kept under lock and key until King Charles' coronation.
Queen Elizabeth's committal service ended with a slew of other symbolic traditions.
To begin with, King Charles laid the Queen's Company Camp Colour of the Grenadier Guards,
a regimental flag that is specific to Queen Elizabeth II, on top of her coffin.
The Grenadier Guards, recognizable by their red coats, black bearskin hats, and use of
the flag in question, will now be rechristened as the King's guard and will receive a new
flag that is unique to King Charles.
Next, the Lord Chamberlin, the most senior officer appointed by the royal household,
broke his wand of office and placed the pieces on top of the monarch's coffin.
The move illustrated that his service to the queen, as a sovereign, had ended.
His role in the palace, however, has not.
One of his primary jobs, facilitating a smooth transition of power from Queen Elizabeth II
to King Charles III, is only just beginning.
Finally, Queen Elizabeth's titles were read, out loud, for a final time.
Then her coffin was lowered into the royal vault as her personal piper played a lament.
For most of her reign, this piper woke the queen up every morning, playing bagpipes outside
her window for 15 minutes at a time.
At Queen Elizabeth's request, he now played her to sleep one final time.
As the notes of "A Salute to the Royal Fendersmith" rang out, the piper wandered away from the
primary chapel, allowing the music to fade as the queen's coffin disappeared from public
view.
While the ceremony at St. George's Chapel was technically the end of the public portion
of Queen Elizabeth's funeral services, it wasn't the end of the road for the monarch.
On the evening of September 19, 2022, she was buried at the King George VI Memorial
Chapel in a family-only service.
No media was allowed at the event, but Buckingham Palace did confirm via social media that it
was set to happen.
They wrote on Twitter,
"This evening a Private Burial will take place in The King George VI Memorial Chapel at Windsor.
The Queen will be Laid to Rest with her late husband The Duke of Edinburgh [...]"
Being buried beside her husband, to whom she had been married for nearly 74 years, was
reportedly of the utmost importance to her majesty, though no other details about the
service have been released.
After the burial was over, the palace released a never-before-seen picture of the queen on
Instagram, captioning it,
"'May flights of Angels sing thee to thy rest.'
In loving memory of Her Majesty The Queen.
1926-2022."
The chapel where Elizabeth is interred is open to the public, and people who wish to
pay their respects will be able to do so at any point in the future.