The late Queen has left Buckingham Palace for one last historic time, in a solemn procession to her lying-in-state.
A gun carriage bearing her coffin travelled across central London to Westminster Hall, followed by King Charles III, Princes William and Harry and Princess Anne, watched by crowds of thousands, many of them in tears.
The imperial state crown on a velvet cushion lay on top of the coffin, alongside a wreath of flowers.
The Band of the Scots Guards and the Band of the Grenadier Guards played funeral marches throughout the procession, starting with Beethoven’s Funeral March No 1.
The heavy steps of the guard of honour and troops in time with the heavy beat reinforced the solemnity of the occasion.
Just three months after the nation celebrated her platinum jubilee, the Queen died six days ago at Balmoral , aged 96. She will lie in state at the hall until her funeral on Monday.
The King, his sons, his sister and brothers marched in step with the the gun carriage of King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery, which was draped in a royal standard.
They were followed by Peter Phillips, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, the Duke of Gloucester and the Earl of Snowdon.
William stared straight ahead as he processed directly behind his father the King, in keeping with his place as the new heir to the throne.
Charles, in his Field Marshal uniform, held onto the end of his Field Marshal Baton, which was presented to him by his mother when he became Field Marshal in 2012.
Procession viewing areas open to the public along the route were full, and silence fell among the thousands-strong crowd as a muffled drum draped in black was beaten at 75 paces per minute.
There are 10 pallbearers, found from service equerries to the late Queen.
A Guard of Honour formed by the King’s Guard mounted on the paved area in the forecourt of the palace.
A detachment of the Life Guards, as well as household cavalry and the household of the Queen, walked in front of the coffin.
After the procession had passed, the crowd outside Buckingham Palace erupted into applause.
In a poignant symbol, the gun carriage of the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery was used for the coffins of the late Queen’s mother and father.
The crown glittered in the daylight as the crowds held up their phones to capture the scenes.
At Horse Guards Parade, crowds of mourners, many in tears, applauded as the procession entered the vast ceremonial parade ground.
The George Gun Carriage was the one that carried King George VI from Sandringham Church to Wolferton Station after his death in 1952 and was used in the funeral of the Queen Mother in 2002.
In a BBC documentary in 2018 about her coronation, the Queen amused viewers by manhandling the heavy crown, pulling it towards her, turning it round and declaring: “This is what I do when I wear it.”
The Queen Consort, Catherine Princess of Wales, Meghan Duchess of Sussex and Sophie Countess of Wessex left Buckingham Palace in a cortege of cars heading for Westminster with police escort vehicles.
