As royal families around the world, and leaders of different countries were taken on a bus to the Queen’s funeral service held at Westminster Abbey on Monday, Biden was the only world leader which was allowed to drive down in his own motorcade to the doors of the event.
As part of a solemn, pomp-filled funeral service held at Westminster Abbey on Monday to honor Queen Elizabeth II’s 70 years as Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden of the United States paid their respects to the monarch. They were joined by other world leaders, members of the royal family, and a select group of guests.
The Bidens traveled to London late on Saturday for the funeral and have maintained a low profile while there, having no formal diplomatic gatherings and limiting their public remarks to the tragic passing of the queen on September 8 at the age of 96. Before the funeral, White House officials told VOA that despite the recent shift in leadership, which includes the new monarch, Charles III, and the recently appointed Prime Minister, Liz Truss, Washington’s close links to London will remain strong.
View this post on Instagram
On the eve of the UN General Assembly on Wednesday in New York, Biden will meet with Truss. According to National Security Council director of strategic communications John Kirby, “we are certain that with King Charles and with Prime Minister Truss that the special connection between the United States and Great Britain will remain, we’re not worried about that at all.”
At Westminster Hall, where the queen’s body lay in state on Sunday, tens of thousands of people waited in long lines to pay their respects as they passed by her elaborately draped coffin. The Imperial State Crown, orb, and scepter, a priceless and instantly recognized item, were also kept in the casket. The Star of Africa diamond, a 530-carat stone gifted to the Crown by then-colony South Africa in 1907, was perched above the item.
The Queen Consort, the Prince and Princess of Wales, Prince George, and Princess Charlotte have all arrived at the service together with King Charles III. Additionally, the service will be attended by about 200 key employees, volunteers, and members of the public. Numerous mourners have lined the streets of London in front of the abbey, and according to City Hall, all public viewing spaces for the funeral procession are now full. The day marks the conclusion of what is thought to be the largest security operation in UK history, surpassing efforts for the London 2012 Olympics and the Platinum Jubilee weekend, which saw up to 10,000 police officers on duty daily.
The Prince and Princess of Wales will follow the Duke of York, the Earl and Countess of Wessex, Princess Royal, and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence as they follow King Charles III and the Queen Consort directly behind the Queen’s coffin at the funeral. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, as well as other royal family members, will follow Prince George and Princess Charlotte as they walk side by side with their parents. The Queen’s period of lying in state at Westminster Hall, which ended at 6.30 am, is followed by the service.
