Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral will occur at Westminster Abbey at 11 am on Monday, 19 September. The venue, which has a capacity of 2,000 people, will be full of distinguished guests.
UK Prime Minister Liz Truss is expected to attend alongside Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer. Both the First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon and Irish premier Michael Martin will also be travelling to London for the service.
The Queen’s four children will naturally be present, namely King Charles III, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward – in attendance alongside Camilla, the Queen Consort, Sir Timothy Laurence, and Sophie, Countess of Wessex.
The Queen’s grandchildren, Princes William and Harry, Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, Lady Louise Windsor and James, and Viscount Severn will also be in attendance.
In addition, the presence of spouses Catherine, the Princess of Wales and Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, and Jack Brooksbank is also expected.
Additional guests who will most likely attend the service include the Queen’s cousins: the Duke of Kent, Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, Princess Alexandra, and Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester.
Other royals who confirmed attendance include:
- King Philippe and Queen Mathilde (Belgium)
- Queen Margrethe II (Denmark)
- Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary (Denmark)
- Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako (Japan)
- King Abdullah II (Jordan)
- Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene (Monaco)
- King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima (Netherlands)
- Princess Beatrix (Netherlands)
- King Harald V and Queen Sonja (Norway)
- King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia Ortiz (Spain)
- Former King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofia (Spain)
- King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia (Sweden)
World leaders who have confirmed their presence via public statements or in the media include:
- Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese
- Austrian President, Alexander Van der Bellen
- Argentine ambassador to the United Kingdom Javier Figueroa
- Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of Bangladesh
- Floyla Tzalam, Governor General of Belize
- Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro
- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
- European Council President Charles Michel
- European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen
- Finland’s President Sauli Niinisto
- French President Emmanuel Macron
- German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier
- Hungarian President Katalin Novak
- Droupadi Murmu, President of India
- Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland
- Israeli President Isaac Herzog
- Italian President Sergio Mattarella
- Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness
- Mexico’s Foreign Affairs Secretary Marcelo Ebrard
- Latvian President Egils Levits
- Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda
- New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
- Prime Minister of Palestine Mohammad Shtayyeh
- Poland’s President Andrzej Duda
- HH Amir Tamim bin Hamad al Thani, Emir of Qatar
- President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa
- South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol
- Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe
- Susan Dougan, Governor General of St Vincent and the Grenadines
- Trinidad and Tobago President Paula-Mae Weekes
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
- US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden
Politico reports that world leaders in attendance have been asked to limit their use of cars, private jets, and helicopters in their journey to the event.
Following the funeral, overseas leaders will be invited to a Dean’s Yard reception within the Abbey grounds, hosted by Foreign Secretary James Cleverly.
“This will be a funeral like no other”,- said the Director of the U.K. in the World initiative Kohn Kampfner said, as quoted by Express.
“There have been great state funerals before — of American presidents, Nelson Mandela and others. But quite simply, the queen was the most famous person in the world, and as a result, I think there will be an attendance list that will be unprecedented,” – he added.
Image: Twitter (@RoyalFamily)
Author: Sébastien Meuwissen
