Sevenoaks, and the country, this week said our final goodbyes to a constant that was shared in all our lives. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was the steady hand that guided us through our country’s triumphs and tribulations over an extraordinary 70-year reign, and over the past two weeks our nation and community has come together to mourn her passing and to celebrate an extraordinary lifetime of service.
The funeral on Monday was profoundly moving and a beautiful tribute for a truly remarkable woman. While we all watched with tears in our eyes, we can feel proud that our county put on a magnificent and fitting occasion to say farewell to our longest reigning monarch.
From the stunning display of military precision to the glorious surroundings. The crowds, the stirring music, the assembled heads of state. The Queen’s funeral in every aspect matched the grandeur of her reign.
To everyone who was involved with the proceedings – including the Royal Household, the military, the police, the bagpipers, the choirs, the Parliamentary staff and volunteers who manned The Queue, I would like to say a heartfelt thank you. It was better than we could have imagined. You did us proud.
Everyone will no doubt have found themselves this week reflecting on certain images and moments from Monday’s final farewell. The Queen’s pony pictured lining the Long Mile for the procession and her corgis Sandy and Muick sat in the forecourt of Windsor Castle ready to greet their late mistress ahead of the Committal Service; the eight pallbearers chosen from the Queen’s Company 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards (some of whom were summoned home from Iraq on the day of the Queen’s death) as they climbed the steps of St George’s Chapel; the removal of the Imperial State Crown, orb and sceptre from Queen Elizabeth’s casket and the snapping of the Wand of Office; the final lowering of the coffin into the Royal Vault which saw our beloved Queen reunited with Prince Philip’s casket. All were moments in our nation’s history, and we won’t see the like of it again.
With the national mourning now having concluded, the people of Britain have evidenced beyond doubt that the traditional values Queen Elizabeth personified – dutiful service, quiet discretion and self-restrained stoicism – are alive and well in the country she loved.
The widespread admiration for the late Queen powerfully expressed in England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and across the Commonwealth, alongside renewed enthusiasm for her heir, is a testament to the bonds of fellowship she strengthened, and King Charles III has embraced.
We now have a new King very able to take over a tremendous legacy and to offer the nation continuity. The second Carolean age has begun. God Save The King.
