Queen Elizabeth II on Saturday, alone in her pew, said goodbye to her Prince Philip during his funeral at Windsor Castle, but along with the grief by the royal family and millions of people who looked around the world.
She has been sovereign of her kingdom for seven decades, but Elizabeth – who apparently wiped away a tear before the service – looks touchingly small under the echoing stones of the St. , as widows of any rank and happiness.
Only 30 black-clad mourners were admitted inside the medieval chapel on the site of the 950-year-old castle for the final farewell and the Royal Vault funeral of Philip, who died on April 9 at the age of 99.
The 94-year-old queen sat alone due to strict social restrictions, but close to her four children – Prince Charles, Prince Andrew, Princess Anne and Prince Edward – they sat in groups with their own children.
Charles, 72, the future king, fought back tears as he led the procession of his father’s coffin from castle to church.
He and his wife, Camilla Parker-Bowles, shed even more tears during the low service, which began at 3pm after a minute of silence in the UK.
“We are inspired by his unwavering loyalty to our Queen, by his service to the country and the Commonwealth, by his courage, bravery and faith,” Windsor Dean David Conner said in his call to prayer.
Perhaps the greatest mystery of the intimate ceremony – would there be ripeness or tenderness between Charles’ two feuding sons, Prince William, an eventual king, and his brother, Prince Harry, who renounces princess – is with silent dignity.
William, 38, and Harry, 36, marched to church, separated by their cousin, Peter Phillips, and sat separately during the 50-minute service.
But the brothers, who have not been seen in public since last year’s Megxit split, then chatted kindly as they walked down the chapel with William’s wife, Kate Middleton.
The future queen, 39, paid tribute to her jewelry and wore diamond earrings borrowed from the queen donated by Philip to Elizabeth for their 1947 wedding.
Harry’s wife, Meghan Markle, who is seven months pregnant with their second child, a girl, has stayed at home in Los Angeles.
Markle watched the funeral like everyone else on TV, though she sent a wreath and handwritten card to the chapel.
‘They know it’s not about them on Saturday; it’s about their grandfather’s memory and supporting their grandmother ‘, a royal source told The Daily Telegraph earlier.
Philip – the longest serving in British history – was a tireless supporter of the monarchy, a popular participant in tens of thousands of public engagements.
On any other day the church would have been filled and the procession of his coffin would have been crowded by spectators.
On Saturday, a modest group of several hundred stood along the streets near the castle, some of whom were wearing face masks that looked like him.
Despite the shortlist of contestants, royal viewers analyzed every step, look and glittering jewel from their TVs, from the moment Philip’s coffin was carried out of the palace by eight pedestrians.
During their marriage, Philip persecuted the queen in accordance with the royal protocol. But the queen followed the funeral procession in her Bentley on Saturday – and it was inside the car that she stabbed her in the eye with her black gloved hand.
She stayed behind her hearse and marchers, rather than in front of them where a monarch would normally be, as if he wanted to lead her, for a change and for their last march together.
Philip, recognized in World War II for bravery, was a lieutenant commander in the Royal Navy, and his coffin was adorned with his hat and sword.
The hearse was personally selected by Philip, a military green, electrically powered Land Rover he designed himself.
“Just put me in the back of a Land Rover,” he apparently asked Elizabeth to respect his wish.