Today the Queen leaves Scotland forever: The deceased monarch is flown to London. In Edinburgh, citizens can say goodbye at the coffin until the evening. King Charles is expected in Northern Ireland.
LONDON – The body of the Queen will be transferred from Scotland to the British capital London on Tuesday evening. A plane with the coffin is scheduled to take off from the airport in the Scottish capital Edinburgh at 7:00 p.m. (CEST) and land just under an hour later. Queen’s daughter Princess Anne (72) is also on board. Elizabeth II’s coffin will then be driven to Buckingham Palace, where it will remain overnight. King Charles III will not be in London, the monarch and his wife are traveling to Northern Ireland from Edinburgh on Tuesday.
In the Northern Irish capital of Belfast, Charles (73) and Queen Camilla (75) visit an exhibition at Hillsborough Castle about the long bond between Elizabeth II and the British provinces. Meetings are also planned with the British Minister for Northern Ireland, Chris Heaton-Harris, and leaders of the Northern Irish parties.
In the regional parliament, Charles will receive a message of condolences. Later, the royal couple attend a prayer at St. Anne’s Cathedral.
The Queen died Thursday at Balmoral Castle, Scotland, aged 96. She was first transferred from Balmoral to Edinburgh. There was a procession there on Monday, to which the new king had also arrived.
The Queen’s children held a vigil
King Charles III led the funeral procession with the coffin in the old town. Thousands of Scots lined the way when, in addition to Charles, his siblings Princess Anne, Prince Andrew (62) and Prince Edward (58) walked behind the hearse. The procession led from the royal residence, the Palace of Holyroodhouse, to St Giles Cathedral, just over a kilometer away, where a service was held.
The closed coffin was laid out there so that the population could continue to say goodbye. On Monday evening, the Queen’s four children stood on the four sides of the coffin and held a short wake.
Charles’ trip to Scotland is part of the days of mourning, which include visits by the new king to all four counties of Britain. It’s Northern Ireland’s turn on Tuesday, and a visit to Wales is also planned.
Funeral procession through London on Wednesday
Charles will then lead a funeral procession in London on Wednesday, which is to lead from Buckingham Palace to Parliament. There the coffin will be laid out on a scaffolding known as a catafalque in Westminster Hall from 5 p.m. (local time). Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to attend the wake. The first Queen fans are already waiting there.
Until the morning of the state funeral, the population has the opportunity to pay the Queen one last visit and say goodbye. The state funeral, to which Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier wants to travel as a representative of Germany, is scheduled for Monday next week. The British get an extra holiday for this. Until then, national mourning applies.
On the evening before the planned state funeral (September 18, 9:00 p.m. CEST), the British government in London has called on them to observe a minute’s silence for the Queen. dpa
