Prince Philip's funeral cut short due to Covid-19 concerns
The long-planned ceremony is restricted by the pandemic: There is no military procession, a small guest list and a four-person choir.
Buckingham Palace revealed more details of Prince Philip's funeral on Saturday, a long-planned event that had to be severely restricted due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
There will be no military procession through Windsor and the public will view the ceremonies only on television. The congregation, including Queen Elizabeth II, will wear a mask and the only people singing will be a four-person choir. Meanwhile, Prince Harry and Prince William will not walk side by side during the funeral procession following tensions between the two brothers.
The celebration had been planned for so long that it was commented that Prince Philip, the queen's husband, joked that he had outlived many of those involved in its preparation. The Duke of Edinburgh's coffin was measured and manufactured decades ago. The queen's consort, who died at the age of 99, even participated in the design of the modified Land Rover that will bring his body to the Chapel of Windsor Castle.
But some things could not be foreseen. The global pandemic cut from hundreds of anticipated guests to just 30 to meet UK Covid-19 guidelines. And an uneasy division within the ranks of the House of Windsor caused the queen's grandson, Prince Harry, to leave as an active member of the family.
Still, Saturday afternoon's funeral will contain many of the original touches Prince Philip requested, palace officials said Thursday. On the one hand, there will be a strong military influence, speaking of his own service in the Royal Navy during WWII.
Shooting guns will mark the beginning of a nationwide minute of silence at 3:00 p.m. to remember his life. At your request, a cornet will play “Action Stations” at the end of the funeral service, a naval call traditionally used to summon a crew to battle, but also played at funerals for Royal Navy sailors. The "funeral service is very much in line with the duke's wishes," said a Buckingham Palace spokesman.
Missing will be the thousands of mourners who in normal times would have been expected to congregate outside Windsor Castle, as well as the hundreds who were to attend the funeral.
In recent days, the queen has had to reduce a large guest list to 30. The short list includes Prince Philip's children, his grandchildren and a handful of cousins invited to St. George's Chapel.
"Her Majesty wanted to make sure that all branches of the Duke's family were there and had to make some decisions, to be fair, very difficult," said the Buckingham Palace spokesman.
Several more distant cousins, the great-grandchildren of Prince Philip and Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, who is the ex-wife of Prince Andrew, cannot attend. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he would not go to free up space for a member of the royal family. Meghan Markle, Prince Harry's wife, did not travel from California, because she is in an advanced pregnancy.
On Thursday, Buckingham Palace cleared up some other pending protocol issues. After resigning from the royal family, Prince Harry had his ceremonial military titles taken away, which means that he is not allowed to attend the funeral dressed in military uniform. To avoid controversy, the queen decided that none of the family members will wear military uniforms. Instead, all family members will wear morning coats with medals or day dresses.
Royal observers also noted that the plan for the funeral procession does not have Prince Harry walking alongside his brother, Prince William. Ties between the two were strained when Prince Harry and his wife alleged racism in the royal ranks during a televised interview with Oprah Winfrey. Palace officials were quick to quell the idea that the procession was trying to send a signal about the two princes' relationship.
Buckingham Palace has yet to announce seating arrangements or say who will deliver the eulogy. The palace has also not released the order of service. Therefore, it is unclear whether Prince Harry will be referred to as his Royal Highness, a style he abandoned as part of his separation from the family.
The funeral is the final step in an elaborate plan to mark the death of Prince Philip.
All the funeral plans of British royalty have code names linked to bridges. Prince Philip's is known as Operation Forth Bridge, referring to a bridge in Scotland, since he is the Duke of Edinburgh. The queen's funeral plan is called Operation London Bridge.
When the death of Prince Philip was announced on April 9, a well-rehearsed choreography went into action.
The BBC news channel was briefly turned off as the presenter donned black mourning clothing to announce the news. The BBC stopped children's programming. National flags were lowered to half mast. Parliament paused and stopped passing laws until the end of the official mourning period after the funeral.
People are encouraged not to travel to Windsor for the funeral.
The day itself has been carefully prepared. On Saturday, the coffin will be carried by soldiers from the Queen's Company, First Battalion of Guards Grenadiers, in a ceremonial procession from the state entrance of Windsor Castle to St George's Chapel, which is located within the walls. from the castle.
Placed on the grass in the ring next to the gate will be representative military units connected to Prince Philip. The bearers will place the coffin in the Land Rover. During an exactly eight-minute procession to the chapel, artillery cannons will be fired at one-minute intervals from the east lawn of Windsor Castle.
Upon arriving at the chapel, a military band will play a performance of “God Save the Queen” and will end exactly when the vehicle stops. Royal Marines will remove the coffin from the car and then at 3pm there will be a minute of silence across the UK.
Only 30 guests and those on duty in the chapel will be allowed in. Inside the church, on cushions on the altar, will be the medals of the Duke of Edinburgh and his field marshal's baton along with the insignia of the two countries from which he was born as prince, Denmark and Greece, his birthplace .
At the end of the service, Prince Philip's coffin will be lowered directly from the front of the altar to the royal vault, accompanied by the choir singing the national anthem.
