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Prince Philip’s funeral is set to go green with an electric Land Rover and a wool coffin
ECO-pioneer Prince Philip is set to be given a green funeral — with an electric Land Rover carrying a coffin made of wool.
Palace officials have looked at using the £900 casket for the Duke, who was among the first to highlight climate change in the 1950s.
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In a further nod to the Duke of Edinburgh’s green credentials, the modified Land Rover Defender 130 Gun Bus he helped design is expected to be a hybrid.
And the chosen undertakers — Leverton and Sons — were founding members of the Association of Green Funeral Directors, and used Britain’s first all-electric hearse.
The London-based company previously organised the 1997 funeral of Princess Diana.
Leeds-based AW Hainsworth, which makes woollen coffins, has a long-standing relationship with the Royal Family and made the military uniforms worn by Prince William and Harry at their weddings.
Last night, director Thomas Hainsworth said: “I met the Duke of Edinburgh on several occasions.
“Once was at the Queen’s Award for Innovation where I introduced myself and explained I was in textiles. He replied by saying, ‘Oh yes, a dying industry isn’t it?’.”
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Prince Charles invited Hainsworth’s to exhibit at his Garden Party to Make a Difference in 2010 to encourage sustainability.
In a speech, he joked: “I have discovered a company that makes a woollen coffin — coffins, ladies and gentlemen, to die for.”
Sales director Rachel Hainsworth said: “He liked the fact the coffins are environmentally friendly, but also the fact that by using British wool we are supporting Britain’s farmers.”
Made from three fleeces, each coffin features a cotton lining and is 100 per cent biodegradable.
Woollen coffins were used as far back as the 17th century, but Hainsworth’s decided to reinvent the idea and have since placed a patent on it.
The Duke will make his final journey on the back of a specially adapted Land Rover for the 3pm send-off on Saturday.
His coffin will be draped in his personal standard. A wreath and his naval cap and sword will be on top.
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Senior Royals including Prince Charles will walk behind during an eight-minute procession to St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle.
Princes William and Harry are expected to join him, along with Princess Anne and Princes Edward and Andrew.
Guns will be fired by The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery for each minute of the procession.
As well as Princess Diana’s funeral, undertakers Leverton and Sons were also involved in arrangements for the Queen Mother, Princess Margaret, Lady Thatcher and George Michael.
Company director Clive Leverton, the seventh generation in an eight-generation family firm, said: “You see someone who has been forever in the newspapers, and then you see their dead body in front of you. But we are not there to stand around and weep.
“It was the same with Diana, although that was quite traumatic because of the circumstances.
“I had to go over to Paris and collect the body. And this was a vibrant young lady, a mother with a young family who had been in a terrible car accident. We had to act under instruction very speedily.”
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Levertons was founded in St Pancras, central London, in 1763. In 1888, the business moved to nearby Camden.
Its offices there are lined with family portraits, while shelves are filled with cracked red leather ledgers containing the names of those they have buried since 1896.
Insiders say plans for the Duke’s funeral — codenamed Operation Forth Bridge — have been in place for “some years”.
But in the last year, they have been hastily redrawn amid the Covid pandemic.
It means much of the pomp and ceremony will be scaled back with just 30 guests permitted at St George’s Chapel. The revised plans were approved by the Queen and will be carried out with military precision, including a nationwide minute’s silence at 3pm.
Mourners will be expected to wear face masks and socially distance throughout.
The Queen, however, will be able to stand close to and be comforted by those in her personal bubble.
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The public are urged to stay away from the event and instead watch at home on telly.
A Buckingham Palace spokesman said: “The Covid-19 pandemic has, of course, required us to make significant adaptations to the original arrangements for His Royal Highness’s funeral.
“However, we are certain that this occasion will be no less fitting a farewell to His Royal Highness, marking his significant duty and service to the nation and the Commonwealth.
“Despite these necessary changes, they still very much reflect the personal wishes of The Duke.”
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A period of national mourning began on Friday and will end after the funeral.
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It means Union Jacks will remain at half mast.
Members of the Royal Family and their households will observe a two-week period of mourning and will wear “mourning bands” while undertaking any engagements.
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