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'I can't believe it': Mother of one of Queen's pallbearers had no idea of son's weighty responsibility

Carolyn Sanderson, 19-year-old David's mother, says, 'We didn’t actually know anything because it was all private to the army'

BY SRIJAL SHARMA

UPDATED SEP 24, 2022

David Sanderson (front) was among the eight pallbearers entrusted with the solemn task of carrying Queen Elizabeth II's coffin (Getty Images)

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM: The mother of 19-year-old David Sanderson, who was selected to be one of the eight soldiers from the Queen’s Company 1st Battalion, Grenadier Guards, to carry the Queen's casket in London and Windsor as per ChronicleLive, revealed how she had no idea that her son would be entrusted with the responsibility. She added that she was "beyond proud" after first seeing him in photos during rehearsals.

More than half of the world watched the proceddings of Queen Elizabeth II's funeral at Westminster Abbey on Monday, September 19. However, Sanderson's family was watching it to also see him in action.

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Sanderson's mother Carolyn said, “I’m beyond proud. It has just been amazing. I still can’t believe it happened." She continued, “We didn’t actually know anything because it was all private to the army. We were looking at some photographs of the rehearsal and my husband said it looked like our David." She added, “I looked and said ‘of course it is!’ It’s just wonderful. I think I’ve discovered a new emotion. We’re really upset about the Queen; I love the Royal family, I’m very much a royalist and it was an awful day when we heard she had passed. I had just stopped crying about the Queen and I started crying about David.” Sanderson was standing at the front on the right-hand side of the casket.

David Sanderson, front right holding the coffin, was not permitted to reveal he would be a pallbearer (picture credits: POOL/AFP Getty Images) — David Sanderson, (front right) was not permitted to reveal he would be a pallbearer (POOL/AFP Getty Images)

Before joining up with the Grenadier Guards, Sanderson was training at Harrogate and Catterick Garrison when he joined the army three years ago. He joined the same regiment in which his late grandfather John completed his national service in the British Army’s most senior infantry division known for their distinctive red tunics and tall black bearskins, the regiment to which even the Queen has strong links. Carolyn added, "She had only had the chance to speak to him briefly since the funeral." She further mentioned, “He will never forget this. He looked after her from the very start to her last journey. Seeing him on the television going to Westminster Abbey was just amazing. I just lost it – that’s our David. They were all brilliant, I think it was perfect."