The remains of Elizabeth II left Edinburgh Airport
The Royal Air Force C17 Globemaster plane carrying Queen Elizabeth’s coffin took off from Edinburgh Airport on military honours.
He is heading for London, where he is expected in just under an hour.
The plane carrying the coffin of Elizabeth II prepares to take off
Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin was laid inside the Royal Air Force plane. The remains were carried in solemn silence, before being joined by Princess Anne.
The plane should land in London around 7:30 p.m. French time, after a 55-minute flight.
Elizabeth II’s coffin arrives at Edinburgh Airport
The coffin of Elizabeth II is preparing to leave Scotland for good. He will fly to London in a Royal Air Force C17 Globemaster aircraft.
The royal convoy traveled 14 kilometers between Saint-Gilles Cathedral and the tarmac, to the applause and the last tributes of the Scots who crowded to the side of the roads to see the hearse.
Princess Anne escorts the body to the English capital, where the coffin will be welcomed by King Charles before spending the night at Buckingham Palace.
Elizabeth II’s coffin leaves Edinburgh
The coffin of Elizabeth II leaves St. Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh to the sound of bagpipes.
The last procession takes place in the presence of thousands of Scots, who came to pay homage one last time to their queen.
Princess Anne, present in Edinburgh, will escort her mother to London. The coffin will travel on board the Royal Air Force’s C17 Globemaster aircraft, an aircraft which has carried out many humanitarian missions in the past.
Charles III leaves Belfast to go to Buckingham Palace
The religious ceremony at Ste Anne’s Cathedral has come to an end. King Charles III allowed himself a walkabout after mass before heading to London to receive the queen’s coffin at Buckingham Palace.
The coffin should leave Edinburgh for the English capital in less than an hour.
Religious ceremony in Belfast
The king is at Ste Anne’s Cathedral, to attend a mass in memory of Queen Elizabeth.
The King addresses Northern Irish leaders
“My mother deeply felt the importance of the role she played in bringing together those whom history had separated and in reaching out to make possible the healing of long-standing wounds,” King Charles said. addressing the leaders of the main Irish parties, at Hillsborough Castle.
Before him, Alex Maskey, the leader of Sinn Féin, a party in favor of the reunification of Northern Ireland with the Republic of Ireland, spoke, welcoming the role of the queen, “witness to social and political changes”, important between his first visit in 1953 and his second trip in 2012.
“Yesterday an assembly of Unionists, Republicans, Nationalists gathered to pay their respects to the late Queen. When she first ascended the throne, no one would have expected such a diverse and inclusive assembly .”
A visit to Northern Ireland under tension
The new King Charles III travels this week the four nations of the United Kingdom but it is in Northern Ireland that the most important test of reconciliation awaits him.
Northern Ireland has only known peace since 1998, and it remains fragile.
Deeply devoted to Queen Elizabeth II, Northern Irish Unionists fear that their cause, belonging to the United Kingdom, is more threatened than ever, in a political context disrupted by Brexit and the historic rise of Republican nationalists, supporters of reunification with the neighboring Republic of Ireland.
Sinn Fein, for its part, refuses to recognize the authority of the monarchy in Northern Ireland, and does not occupy its seats in the Parliament of Westminster.
Brits flock to Edinburgh for farewells
The British rush by tens of thousands this Tuesday to meditate in front of the coffin of Elizabeth II in Edinburgh before its transfer to London, where a grandiose farewell is being prepared.
For several hours, thousands of anonymous people have been gathering, bowing, curtsying, signing themselves or wiping away a tear in front of the oak coffin which rests in the cathedral of the Scottish capital.
Very early Tuesday morning, the waiting time was around two hours but the queue should lengthen in the morning, warned the Scottish government.
Russia, Belarus and Burma not invited to funerals
More than 500 leaders from countries around the world have been invited to the Queen’s funeral next Monday. Russia, Belarus and Burma are not on the list of invited countries.
Vladimir Putin said shortly after the queen’s death that he “did not plan” to attend her funeral.
King Charles III on his way to Ireland
Charles III and his wife Camilla are expected in Northern Ireland on Tuesday to meet the leaders of the main parties. Prime Minister Liz Truss will join them there.