Britain, world leaders and members of royal houses around the world will say goodbye to Queen Elizabeth, the last towering figure of her era, on Monday in a state funeral with impressive pomp, Reuters reported.

At 08:30 (Romanian time), the official vigil ends after four days during which hundreds of thousands of people queued to walk by the coffin of Britain’s longest-serving monarch at London’s monumental Westminster Hall.

They, like many around the world, including US President Joe Biden, wanted to honor her, who died aged 96 after seven decades on the British throne.

“You are lucky to have him for 70 years. We all were,” Biden said.

500 world leaders attended the funeral

Shortly before 1:00 p.m. (Romanian time), the oak casket, draped with a royal flag and an imperial crown at the top, will be placed on top of a cannon and dragged by naval soldiers to Westminster Abbey for burial.

Some 500 world leaders will be among the 2,000 attendees, including Biden, Japan’s Emperor Naruhito, China’s Vice President Wang Qishan and South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa.

The Queen’s great-grandchildren Prince George, 9, and Princess Charlotte, 7, the two eldest children of the current heir to the throne, Prince William, will also be in attendance.

“Over the past 10 days, my wife and I have been deeply moved by the many messages of sympathy and support we have received from across the country and around the world,” said Charles, Elizabeth’s son and the new king.

“As we all prepare to say our final goodbyes, I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank the countless people who have been a source of support and comfort to my family and me during these times of grief,” Charles added.

“We all thought she was invincible”

Elizabeth died on September 8 at her summer home in Scotland, Balmoral Castle. Her health was deteriorating, and for several months the Queen withdrew from public life, although she appointed Liz Truss as Prime Minister just two days before her death.

Her longevity and inextricable connection with Britain was so great that even her own family took her death as a shock. “We all thought she was invincible,” Prince William said.

The 40th sovereign in a line dating back to 1066, Elizabeth ascended the throne in 1952, becoming Britain’s first post-imperial monarch.

She led her nation as it sought to carve out a new place for itself in the world and was instrumental in the emergence of the Commonwealth, which now consists of 56 countries.

When she succeeded her father George VI, Winston Churchill was her first prime minister and Joseph Stalin was the head of the Soviet Union. He has met almost every major figure in politics, entertainment and sports, including Nelson Mandela, Pope John Paul II, The Beatles, Marilyn Monroe, Pele and Roger Federer.

Although she was only 1.60m tall, she dominated rooms with her presence and became a prominent global figure, posthumously praised around the world, from Paris and Washington to Moscow and Beijing. National mourning was declared even in Brazil, Jordan and Cuba, countries with which she had no direct ties.

A million people gather in the center of London

“Queen Elizabeth II was, without a shadow of a doubt, the most famous figure in the world, the most photographed person in history, the most recognizable, and the fact that world leaders gathered in London for her funeral… speaks volumes. about this iconic figure,” historian Anthony Seldon told Reuters.

Transport officials said a million people were expected at the funeral in central London, and police said it would be the biggest security operation in the capital.

King Charles, Princes William and Harry and other members of the Windsor family slowly follow the coffin as it is carried on a carriage to Westminster Abbey, accompanied by around 200 pipers and drummers.

The bell of Westminster Abbey – the place of coronations, weddings and funerals of English and then British kings and queens for almost 1,000 years – will strike 96 times.

“Here, where Queen Elizabeth was married and crowned, we gather from across the country, the Commonwealth and the world to mourn our loss, to remember her long life of selfless service,” said David Hoyle, dean of the University of Westminster. .