The Queen, Prince William, Prince Harry And Kate Middleton Attend Prince Philip's Funeral
The royal family have attended the funeral for Prince Philip at Windsor Castle today.
Photographs and video footage have emerged showing the family looking sombre as they lay the Duke of Edinburgh to rest, eight days after he passed away at the age of 99.
The ceremony - held at St George's Chapel in Windsor, where previous royal events have included the royal weddings of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank - began at 3pm on Saturday April 17, which also marked the time when the nation held a minute's silence.
Ahead of the service, the Queen's car arrived at the chapel as the national anthem played. Her Majesty looked sombre as she arrived dressed in black attire before being met by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Due to ongoing Covid-19 restrictions, 30 people attended the ceremonial funeral, which was not a state funeral, in line with the late Duke's wishes.
The Queen, who left Windsor Castle with a Lady-in-Waiting in a Bentley earlier in the afternoon, sat by herself near the altar during the ceremony due to social distancing enforcements. Prince William and Prince Harry sat opposite each other in the chapel.
The Dean of Windsor presided over the ceremony with a blessing by the Archbishop of Canterbury and a four-member choir performance of music chosen by Prince Philip.
During the service the Archbishop of Canterbury read aloud a prayer for the duke, thanking him for 'his resolute faith and loyalty, for his high sense of duty and integrity, for his life of service to the nation and Commonwealth, and for the courage and inspiration of his leadership'.
'To him, with all the faithful departed, grant thy peace,' he noted.
The Duke of Edinburgh's coffin was draped in his 12ft personal standard and decorated with wreaths chosen by Her Majesty, in addition to his Admiral of the Fleet Naval Cap and sword.
The Duke of Edinburgh's grandchildren, brothers Prince William and Prince Harry, were seen together for the first time in over a year as the Duke of Sussex has been living in California after stepping back as a senior working member of the royal family last year. The brothers walked in a line together, with their cousin, Peter Philips in between them.
Prior to the service, Prince Philip's coffin was flanked by his and the Queen's four children, Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward.
Military bands in the grounds of Windsor played music selected by the duke, which included 'Jerusalem' and Elgar's 'Nimrod', while troops bowed their heads and the Land Rover - is acting as a hearse - drove into the quadrangle of Windsor Castle.
Prince Harry attended the funeral alone as his wife Meghan Markle, who is currently pregnant with the couple's second child, had been advised not to fly by her physicians.
Kate Middleton was also seen in attendance at the service with her husband the Duke of Cambridge, while their children and the rest of Prince Philip's great-grandchildren stayed at home.
Earlier in the afternoon, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were photographed arriving at Windsor Castle, both wearing black face masks and black attire. Kate accessorised her black coat dress with a triple-strand pearl necklace, pearl drop earrings and a black fascinator with a lace veil. It's believed the jewellery is from the Queen's personal collection and has previously been worn by the Duchess and the late Princess Diana.
This week, Kensington Palace shared previously unseen photographs taken by the Duchess of Cambridge to pay tribute to Prince Philip. One photo showed the Queen's unofficial consort surrounded by seven of his great-grandchildren at Balmoral, while another showed him at the wheel of a carriage, with a young Prince George sat by his side in Norfolk.
Other guests at the service included the Duchess of Cornwall, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence, Sophie, Countess of Wessex, Zara and Mike Tindall, Princess Beatrice, Edoardo Mapello Mozzi, Princess Eugenie, Jack Brooksbank , Viscount Severn and Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor, Lady Sarah and Mr Daniel Chatto, the Earl of Snowdon, Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester, the Duke of Kent, Princess Alexandra, the Hon. Lady Ogilvy, the Hereditary Prince of Baden, the Landgrave of Hesse, Prince Philipp of Hohenlohe-Langenburg and the Countess Mountbatten of Burma.
Following the service, the Duke of Edinburgh was interred in the Royal Vault of St George’s Chapel. The BBC reports the coffin was placed on a marble slab in the Quire.
The Duke of Sussex and Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were photographed chatting as they walked out of the service.
HELLO! reports Prince Harry and Meghan Markle organised a wreath to be laid during the service at St George's Chapel in Windsor, with a handwritten note from the Duchess.
The publication reports the Sussexes commissioned florist Willow Crossley, who was the mastermind behind the flower arrangements for the pair's evening wedding reception in Frogmore Gardens in 2018, their son Archie's christening in 2019, and the launch event for Markle's Hubb Community cookbook at Kensington Palace.
It's reported the Duke and Duchess of Sussex asked for the wreath to include acanthus mollis, the national flower of Greece to represent Prince Philip's birth place, and eryngium to represent the Royal Marines. It reportedly also features campanula, rosemary, lavender and roses.
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