The British royal family will bid farewell to Prince Philip, husband of Elizabeth II, next Saturday at a private funeral at Windsor Castle, in the presence of Prince Henry but without his wife, Meghan, he announced on Saturday. Buckingham Palace.
Funeral services will be held at 3pm (2pm GMT) at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, about 40 miles west of London, where the Duke of Edinburgh, a loyal supporter of the sovereign for seven decades , died “placidly” on Friday morning, at age 99.
Only thirty people, including their four children (Carles, Anna, Andreu and Eduard), their grandchildren and other relatives, will be able to attend the funeral, due to the rules imposed to cut the coronavirus pandemic.
Prince Henry, who lives in California after leaving the monarchy last year, will attend the ceremony. However, his wife, Meghan, who is pregnant, will not do so and will stay in the United States, following the advice of her doctor, a palace spokesman said.
To allow “as many family members as possible to attend the funeral,” Prime Minister Boris Johnson will not attend, his office said.
A minute of silence will be observed throughout the country at the start of the ceremony.
The funeral will take place four days before the queen’s birthday, which will mark her 95th birthday on April 21st.
His eldest son, Prince Charles, said on Saturday that both he and the royal family were “hugely” surprised by Prince Philip, whom he referred to as “a very special person”.
Carlos praised his “outstanding service dedicated to the queen, my family and those in the country” and claimed that his father “would have been surprised by the reaction and the touching things that have been said about him”.
national mourning
In the country, which began a national mourning that will last until the day after the funeral, tributes have already begun.
From the Tower of London, on the banks of the Thames, the castles of Edinburgh, Belfast, Gibraltar or the ships of the Royal Navy, where he served during World War II, the roar of cannons resounded from noon (11H00 GMT).
This salvo, the first in a series of 41 (one per minute), paid homage to the patriarch of the British royal family, born in Corfu as Prince of Greece and Denmark and who had a wandering childhood throughout Europe.
Princes Andrew and Edward visited their mother Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle on Saturday. “The queen has been fantastic,” the Countess of Wessex, Sofia, wife of Prince Edward, told reporters as she left the castle.
Prince Charles had visited it on Friday.
Known for saying what he thought, Prince Philip drew attention for his provocative comments, sometimes tinged with racism or sexism.
But the British also remember his tireless devotion to the monarchy, to which he helped to modernize and humanize, and his presence, in the background but unfailing, on the side of the sovereign.
“It represented stability, but also fun, a sense of humor, which we sometimes seem to have lost,” Heather Bridge, 65, near the Tower of London, told AFP.
Accusations of Enrique and Meghan
Prince Philip has participated in more than 22,000 official public engagements since his wife took the throne in 1952.
Now, the monarch will have to deal alone with the crisis that is shaking the British royal family, following recent criticism from his grandson Henry and his wife Meghan against “La Firma”, the monarchy’s nickname, accused of racism. and lack of support.
The latter stated in an interview with American presenter Oprah Winfrey in early March that she had even had suicidal thoughts.
The couple mentioned the racist behavior of a member of the royal family who would have wondered what would be the skin color of the child they were expecting, stating – outside the room – that it was neither the queen nor her husband .
Henry, 36, also said he was “truly disappointed” by the lack of support from his father, Prince Charles, who stopped answering the phone for a while, and revealed that he had moved away from the his brother, William. He said the royal family was not “racist at all”.
On Saturday, the royal family’s Twitter account shared several photos of the queen with her husband at significant times in their lives.
As in 1997, on the occasion of his 50th wedding anniversary, when the one he called “Lilibeth” confided in him: “It has simply been my strength and my support all these years.”