started the funeral of Prince Philip, husband of Queen Elizabeth II

The procession accompanying Prince Philip’s coffin set out on Saturday from the courtyard of Windsor Castle, the royal residence in west London where Elizabeth II’s husband died eight days ago, to St George, where he will be buried.

The eight-minute procession began with the transfer of the coffin into a Land Rover the Prince helped design, followed by the closest members of the Royal Family, including their four children, on foot, followed by the Queen in a car.

Queen Elizabeth II thus bids the last farewell to the man she has been married to for 73 years, her “strength and support”, Prince Philip.

The ceremony began with a minute’s silence before the start of church service at St George’s, the 15th-century Gothic chapel in nearly millennial Windsor Castle, about 50 km west of London.

The royal couple’s four children and several grandchildren rode there in the Land Rover specially designed by Felipe to carry his coffin in a brief funeral procession through the castle gardens.

The Queen followed them in a car, an official Bentley, with a maid of honor.

However, the monarch, who turns 95 on Wednesday, sat alone in the chapel to say goodbye to her husband, the man she married while still a princess in 1947 and whose death lapsed her. left alone in the twilight of his reign.

Many royal experts assure that it was Felipe who managed with an iron fist a family marked by crises, helping the queen to overcome the scandals.

All eyes were on Princes Harry and William, whose relations are strained, searching for a sign of reconciliation.

It was the 36-year-old’s first public appearance with royalty since he and his wife Meghan, who did not travel to the UK because she was pregnant, stepped down from royal duties and moved on. moved to California.

Enrique didn’t walk with his 38-year-old brother, however. Among them was his cousin Peter Phillips, fueling speculation about a lingering dispute.

After the funeral, chaired by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, spiritual leader of the Anglicans, the Duke is to be buried privately in the royal vault of St George’s Chapel.

Due to the coronavirus, the British have been urged not to travel to Windsor. Even so, some decided to make the trip while the majority of the country was following the act on television.

“People aren’t supposed to come, but it’s a big event, the only one in a generation, the duke was special so we expected a lot of people,” Mark, 57, told AFP. one of dozens of agents. deployed in the streets of Windsor.

On the outskirts of the castle, onlookers were also silent, like Kaya Mar, a 65-year-old painter who arrived on the first train from London with a large portrait of Felipe under his arm.

“It was very important for me to be here today,” he said, considering that “he was a good man” and that “he will miss the country”.

Covered with his sword, his naval cap and his personal standard, the duke’s coffin had been transferred in the morning by carriers of the first battalion of grenadiers – of which Felipe was colonel for 42 years – from the private chapel of the royal family to another room in the castle.

Preparing for the procession, the royal guards in their high black hats made of bear hair and dozens of representatives of other military bodies positioned themselves, perfectly aligned, on the manicured lawn of the central courtyard of the castle to the sound of the fanfare.

Under bright sunshine, the Duke’s personal car arrived at the scene, pulled by his two ponies and wearing the deceased’s cap and gloves.

On the steps leading to the chapel, the representatives of the cavalry were positioned, dressed in full dress, with their metal torsos and their helmets with long plumes.

The Prince Consort, who died in Windsor on April 9, two months before her 100th birthday, was a constant presence with Elizabeth II since, at just 25, she was crowned in 1952, as the UK rebuilt itself after The world war. He and his empire were beginning to crumble.

The monarch posted a moving personal photo of them relaxing and smiling on Saturday 2003 in Cairngorms National Park in Scotland.

And footage of key moments from the wedding has been posted on the royal family’s social media.

Funerals for British royalty are usually large-scale, perfected over the years, and attended by monarchs and rulers from all over the world.

But restrictions imposed by the coronavirus forced changes to Felipe’s burial plans, which were limited to 30 intimate guests with masks and safety distances.

With AP information.