Within hours of addressing the Lords and Members of the House of Commons, the King and Queen Consort headed to Scotland, having been there only last week when the Queen died at Balmoral. On arrival at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the King undertook the Ceremony of the Keys. The monarch joined his three siblings, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward, to lead the procession following his mother’s coffin to St Giles’ Cathedral.
The procession of Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles’ Cathedral
ANDY BUCHANAN/Getty Images
The four siblings walked together behind the hearse, as well as Princess Anne’s husband, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, while a car behind them carried the Queen Consort and the Countess of Wessex. Prince Andrew, who stepped back from official royal life in 2019 amid controversy over his former links to Jeffrey Epstein, was wearing a morning suit rather than military uniform (military regalia is typically worn by working members of the Royal Family for ceremonial events, but Andrew had his military titles removed earlier this year).
There, a service of prayer and reflection for the life of the Queen will be held, before the King returns to the Palace of Holyroodhouse to receive the First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon. The King and Queen Consort will then go to the Scottish Parliament, where they will again receive a motion of condolence (as they did at Westminster this morning), before returning to St Giles’ Cathedral to hold a vigil with other Royal Family members.
