Funeral at St. George’s Chapel: This is the Queen’s Burial Process

Funeral in the Chapel of Saint George
This is the procedure for the Queen’s funeral

19/09/2022, 8:15 am

A week and a half after the death of Elizabeth II, the state funeral for the late Queen takes place. Hundreds of heads of state, royalty and other dignitaries from around the world will attend the funeral service at Westminster Abbey. The Queen will then be buried with her family in Windsor Castle. The exact process looks like this:

Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey, in the heart of London, was last used for a monarch’s funeral in 1760 after the death of King George II. After that, St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle was the preferred venue for such occasions. However, Elizabeth II had opted for a larger framework during her lifetime.

In the morning (6:30 a.m. local time, 7:30 a.m. CEST), the public display of her casket in Westminster Hall ends. The Queen’s casket is then readied for transport to nearby Westminster Abbey. Admission for the more than 2,000 guests at the funeral service will begin there at 9:00 a.m. CEST. In addition to members of the royal family, these include British Prime Minister Liz Truss and several predecessors, as well as more than a hundred heads of state and monarchs from around the world.

Procession to Westminster Abbey

At just after 11:35 a.m. CEST, porters will lift the Queen’s coffin from the catafalque in Westminster Hall and take it to a carriage in front of the building’s north gate. Starting at 11:44 a.m. CEST, the two-tone carriage will be roped to Westminster Abbey by 142 young Marines.

The coach has been used at the funerals of Queen Victoria, King Edward VII, George V, George VI, former Prime Minister Winston Churchill and the last Vice-King of India, Lord Louis Mountbatten. Members of the Royal Family will walk behind the casket to Westminster Abbey, where the casket will be carried to a podium in the choir after arriving at the West Gate, scheduled for 11:52 a.m. BST.

The funeral service

The funeral service, which begins at 12 noon CEST, will be led by Dean David Hoyle. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, preaches as spiritual leader of the Anglican Church.

Towards the end of the shift, the military horn sounds “The Last Post”, followed by two minutes of silence. Air traffic over London will be stopped 15 minutes before and 15 minutes after the minutes of silence. The service ends around 1:00 PM with the national anthem and funeral music.

Drive to and through Windsor

Following the funeral service, the coffin will be transported from Westminster Abbey to the triumphant Wellington Arch at Buckingham Palace at 1:15 PM CEST. Charles III and other members of the royal family walk behind the coffin, followed by soldiers from all 56 Commonwealth countries. The Big Ben bell at the British Parliament is ringing and gun salutes are fired every minute.

The Queen’s casket will be taken in a hearse from London to Windsor and will arrive there at 4:06 PM CEST. The coffin is driven along the historic Long Walk to the castle, in the courtyard of which Charles III. and other senior royals rejoin the funeral procession around 4:40pm BST.

Funeral Service in St. Georgskapelle

The procession will arrive at St. George’s Chapel at 4:53 PM CEST. Prince Harry and Meghan were married there in May 2018 and Prince Philip’s funeral service took place there in April 2021. The chapel is also regularly used for royal baptisms.

More than 800 guests attended a televised funeral service at St. George’s (5:00 p.m. CEST), including members of the royal family and politicians, as well as former staff of the Queen. After the service, to the sound of the bagpipes and a blessing from the Archbishop of Canterbury, the coffin is lowered into the Royal Tomb, closing the public part of the funeral. At the end of the ceremony, the national anthem “God Save the King” is sung.

Only close relatives will attend the Queen’s funeral at 8:30 p.m. CEST in the King George VI Memorial Chapel, a special section of the church. The Queen’s parents and her sister Princess Margaret are also buried there. Prince Philip’s coffin is now also being moved from the royal tomb to the memorial chapel.