A Farewell to Gan Gan: Prince George and Princess Charlotte WILL walk behind Queen's coffin at funeral
LONDON, ENGLAND: Prince George, 9, and Princess Charlotte, 7, will bid their final goodbye to their great-grandmother, the Queen, at her state funeral service at Westminster Abbey on September 19. At the funeral service, around 2,000 people are expected to be in the Abbey.
George and Charlotte who are second and third in line to the throne will walk with their parents, Prince William and Kate Middleton behind the Queen's coffin. "As parents, they have, of course, thought long and hard about whether their children should accompany them," a source said, as quoted by Daily Mail, and added, "Of course little Louis is too young, but they think George and Charlotte are up to it."
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William was 15 at the time of his mother's death, and Harry was 12 when they had to walk behind Princess Diana's coffin in September 1997, as per People. Prince Harry told Newsweek in 2017 how difficult it was for them: "My mother had just died, and I had to walk a long way behind her coffin, surrounded by thousands of people watching me while millions more did on television. I don't think any child should be asked to do that, under any circumstances."
A walk behind Queen's coffin
In the procession behind the coffin through the Abbey will be King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla at the head, followed by Princess Anne and her husband Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward and Sophie Wessex. They will be followed by William, Kate, George and Charlotte, and behind them will be Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Peter Phillips and the Earl of Snowdon as well as the Duke of Kent, the Duke of Gloucester and Prince Michael of Kent, as per Mirror.
Buckingham Palace said in a statement that the State Funeral, which begins at 11 am, will “pay tribute to The Queen’s remarkable reign and lifetime of service as Head of State, Nation and Commonwealth.” It will be led by the Dean of Westminster with the Sermon given by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Hymns will include “The Lord’s My Shepherd” which was sung at the Queen’s wedding to Prince Philip in 1947 when she was Princess Elizabeth.
Before the service the Westminster Abbey bell will be tolled 96 times—once for each year of the Queen’s life. The hour-long service will conclude with the Sovereign’s Piper playing Lament “Sleep, dearie, sleep.” The Queen’s Coffin will then be borne in Procession out of Westminster Abbey, returning to the Gun Carriage for the Procession to Wellington Arch, Hyde Park Corner, before travelling to Windsor for the Committal Service in St George’s Chapel.