the queen s lying in state formally ended at 6.30 this morning. the past four days have seen queues stretching five miles along the south bank of the river thames. but the opportunity to witness the scene in person has now ended. and the next time we see the coffin, draped in the royal standard, it will be brought from the palace of westminster on the state gun carriage to westminster abbey for the funeral service at 11 o clock. following the funeral service, the queen s coffin will be drawn by more than 100 naval ratings in a long procession from the abbey to wellington arch at london s hyde park corner. there are more than 3,000 military personnel taking part in the procession. it s nearly a500 if you include all those taking place at windsor. and at wellington arch, the coffin will be transferred to the state hearse for its final journey to the queen s main home windsor castle where a procession will make its way up the long walk and on to st george s chapel where
In london but with all the key elements there, the bands playing, the pipes and drums, the heralds, the pipes and drums, the heralds, the glorious tabards, members of the royal family and the royal household. the queen s coffin on the state hearse, and the party of the grenadier guards is pallbearers. the people are already gathering, people who have been here over the weekend and laying flowers, which you can see on the left there leading up to the castle entrance, people gathering and going through security, and by the time the procession arrives here, they will be here in their thousands, i have no doubt. through that gate, the hearse will go, and beyond in the courtyard, the king and members of the royal family who have travelled down from london will meet the hearse and accompany it down through the norrman gate into the entrance
I think as well there has not been a state funeralfor a monarch in westminster abbey since the funeral for george ii westminster abbey since the funeral for george i! back in 1760. when we followed the events back in 1952 for the funeral of george vi, the queen s father, there was indeed a procession in central london, but it went from westminster hall up to paddington station and to windsor. there was no service at the abbey. there was no service at the abbey. the green very much wanted the service at westminster abbey, this is her wish, and service at westminster abbey, this is herwish, and i am service at westminster abbey, this is her wish, and i am sure everyone will agree it is a very fitting setting for the state funeral for her majesty. the queen s last visit to the abbey was in march this year for a memorial service for the duke of edinburgh. this house of kings as it is known has been the backdrop for some of the biggest events in the green s life both sad and happy.
Of horse guards, the procession will passin of horse guards, the procession will pass in a short while, a little later on, people crowded there, and a big contrast of course to that saturday in earlyjune when we had tens of thousands of people in the park and the stands around the birthday parade itself, and we looked down to the guards memorial there which is at the flank of st james s park, so a lovely part of london, and one of course which is strongly associated with the queen because of that parade and because of the ceremonial route from the palace overtook the houses of parliament for the state opening of parliament. all these lovely commonwealth flags on the approach road to underline again all the contribution that the queen has made in terms of the commonwealth. and sally, from your point of view, there are so many aspects of the queen s work that you talk about, but seeing the flags here, that dominated a lot of her business.
Or none. the expression of a tolerant vision of faith which commenced her actions as monarch, not least in the role she played promoting peace and reconciliation in northern ireland and between the united kingdom the republic of ireland. there was the example she set in enniskillen on the 25th anniversary of the bombing of that town by the ira. queen elizabeth walked from the anglican church to the roman catholic church in what was later described by the parish priest as an expression of unity by a gracious queen, a lovely lady. we can see in the congregation now the former archbishop of canterbury lord carey. and today we can expect to see representatives from a wide spectrum of faiths. shortly before the service there will be a procession of religious representatives including from the