Stunning satellite images show sea of mourners line up along London's streets for Queen’s funeral procession
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM: Exceptional satellite images have revealed the giant mass of people who came on the streets and gathered at viewpoints to see the Queen’s funeral procession through London. Almost two million mourners came out to see the coffin as it made its way to Westminster Abbey, where the funeral was attended by around 2,000 heads of state and dignitaries from around the world.
Satellite photos showed the huge turnout with wide thick lines with dots covering the sides of roads while over Hyde Park, a patch of black marked where people watched the funeral on big screens. After the service at the Abbey, the procession made its way from central London to Windsor Castle.
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Mourners were eager to witness the short procession from Westminster Abbey to the Mall and through the Albert Memorial, which began at 9 am. King Charles III, Prince William, and the Duke of Sussex were among royal members who participated in the spectacle involving army troops from across the Commonwealth.
Around 4.2 billion people watched the state funeral on television and around 250,000 filed past the Queen’s coffin while it was lying in state. The funeral was regarded as the biggest security operation the UK has ever seen.
A sea of arms held up mobile phones in Parliament Square to film the spectacular procession after a service attended by numerous world leaders.
Queen Elizabeth II's coffin was lowered into the Royal Vault at St George's Chapel in Windsor Castle late on Monday, bringing to an end public mourning for Britain's longest-reigning monarch. The "second Elizabethan age" was symbolically brought to a close when the highest-ranking official in the royal household, Lord Chamberlain Andrew Parker, broke his wand of office.
The scale of the crowd surpassed the Platinum Jubilee weekend and the London 2012 Olympics, which saw up to 10,000 police officers on duty per day. It was also the largest global protection operation dealt with by the force, with world leaders, dignitaries and other VIPs attending the state funeral. Former counter-terrorism police chief Nick Aldworth said it was "probably the biggest operation that we're likely to mount in the UK."