Yesterday was the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II – the most poignant of days for me in so many ways. She was queen when I was born, so I have known no other monarch in the 70 years she reigned. It was a massive shock to hear of her death, even though she was 96 when she died….as we were on holiday in France at the time…it was one of those moments in your life that you know exactly where you were when you heard…
I was so pleased that we would be back for the funeral as I knew I wanted to watch it. I felt it was important in many ways, I am a royalist, and have always admired The Queen. But as the funeral progressed over the seven hours that I sat and watched it, I was so taken with the pomp and ceremony, the stunningly beautiful Westminster Abbey with its soaring arches and light, with the dignatories, and so many heads of state from other countries there, from the quiet dignity of the royal family, and so many of the armed forces there. Of the ordinary people lining the streets of London to see the gun carriage bearing her coffin, and then when the coffin was transferred to the royal hearse to drive the 30 miles to Windsor, all the people again lining the streets, and as it was slowly driven up The Long Walk to Windsor Castle and George Chapel there for the more personal funeral. I cried tears of joy, and of sorrow, at the poignant beauty of it all. And at the end there was only one word I could think of to describe it and that was …Flawless….
It was so good for the country to know that the world was watching….its brought us all together again…when we needed it….