FULL OF EMOTION
Prince Charles fights back tears at his father’s funeral as he pays respects to Duke of Edinburgh
PRINCE Charles fought back tears today as he bid an emotional final farewell to his father, the Duke of Edinburgh.
The Prince of Wales, 72, led the procession of his father's coffin on the short walk from Windsor Castle to St George's Chapel.
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Prince Charles was adorned in military medals and followed by his siblings, Princess Anne, Prince Edward and Prince Andrew.
Although all members of the Royal Family attending the funeral wore black masks, Charles’ eyes were full of emotion at the passing of his father, aged 99.
Despite a sometimes difficult relationship with his father, Charles’s grief was clear to millions around the world.
He struggled throughout the procession and the service to hide his clear personal loss.
Each minute was marked by gunfire as the band of the Grenadier Guards - of which the Duke was colonel for 42 years — played.
BLINKED BACK TEARS
Prince Charles and the Queen led a one-minute silence for the Duke of Edinburgh as the funeral began.
As the service continued, Camilla shuffled closer to her husband in a strong show of support as he blinked back tears.
The Queen and her family gathered at St George's Chapel to say farewell to Philip, who died peacefully just over a week ago at Windsor Castle.
He was hailed as the "grandfather" of the country by his son the Duke of York.
In weather more like summer than spring, the Prince of Wales and Princess Royal led senior royals in walking behind their father's coffin the short distance from the castle to St George's Chapel.
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No military uniforms were worn to the funeral, but each royal family member wore the appropriate military medals on their black morning suits.
Philip abhorred fuss and often joked with the Queen when discussing the arrangements: “Just stick me in the back of a Land Rover and drive me to Windsor.”
He got his wish but members of the Armed Forces, of which he was so closely linked, gave him a fitting send-off beneath the blue skies and splendid sunshine of Windsor.
For the procession, the coffin was lifted into place by Grenadier Guardsmen onto the rear of the dark bronze green Land Rover Defender hearse the duke designed himself.
At the start of the service, a laurel wreath was placed in Philip’s choir stall next to the Queen — replacing his banner, helm, mantling and sword.
His medals and decorations were placed at the altar, sewn on to nine cushions with fishing wire, together with his Royal Air Force wings and Field Marshal’s baton.
'UNWAVERING LOYALTY'
The Duke also included insignia from Denmark and Greece.
The royals sat two metres apart, in line with government guidelines on Covid, as the doors to St George’s Chapel were then closed and the Royal Navy Piping Party piped the Carry On.
The Dean of Windsor had married Prince Harry and Meghan in the chapel in 2018.
But today he told the grieving Royal Family: “We are here today to commit into the hands of God the soul of his servant Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.
“With grateful hearts, we remember the many ways in which his long life has been a blessing to us.
"We have been inspired by his unwavering loyalty to our Queen, by his service to the nation and the Commonwealth, by his courage, fortitude and faith.
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“Our lives have been enriched through the challenges that he has set us, the encouragement that he has given us, his kindness, humour and humanity.
“We therefore pray that God will give us grace to follow his example, and that, with our brother Philip, at the last, we shall know the joys of life eternal.”
The 50-minute service was written by the Duke and celebrated his life at sea.
Nautical tributes included the hymn Eternal Father, Strong to Save, traditionally associated with seafarers and maritime armed services.
A choir, made up of four lay clerks and a soprano, sang as the Royal Family were forbidden to under Covid rules. Written in 1860 by William Whiting, the hymn was inspired by the dangers of the sea described in Psalm 107.
SILENTLY LOOKED ON
It was also sung at the funeral of Philip’s beloved uncle, Earl Mountbatten of Burma, murdered by the IRA in 1979.
Lyrics include: “O hear us when we cry to thee, For those in peril on the sea. O sacred Spirit, who didst brood, upon the chaos dark and rude. Who bad’st its angry tumult cease, and gavest light and life and peace.
“O hear us when we cry to thee, For those in peril on the sea.”
The choir also sang The Jubilate, written by Benjamin Britten at the request of the Duke of Edinburgh.
There was no sermon or eulogy, in keeping with both Philip’s wishes and royal funeral protocol.
Finally, his coffin was mechanically lowered into the Royal Vault as the Queen, sat just feet away, silently looked on.
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That would normally be in private but it was broadcast to the world in a television first.
TV cameras cut away repeatedly as the casket made its slow descent below the chapel.
A shot of a lone piper playing a lament filled the screens before buglers from the Royal Marines sounded The Last Post.
After a silence, the Reveille was sounded by the State Trumpeters of the Household Cavalry before Action Stations.
Traditionally an announcement to signify all hands should go to battle stations, it was specifically requested by Prince Philip.
The Queen was first to leave the chapel, followed by other family members who made their way back into Windsor on foot.
'DEAR PAPA'
In an emotional statement last week, Prince Charles said he misses his father "enormously" and the Duke would be "so deeply touched" by the outpouring of grief.
The tearful Prince Charles paid tribute to his "Dear Papa" on the steps of his Gloucestershire home Highgrove.
He said: "I particularly wanted to say that my father, for I suppose the last 70 years, has given the most remarkable, devoted service to The Queen, to my family and to the country, but also to the whole of the Commonwealth.
"As you can imagine, my family and I miss my father enormously.
"He was a much loved and appreciated figure and apart from anything else, I can imagine, he would be so deeply touched by the number of other people here and elsewhere around the world and the Commonwealth, who also I think, share our loss and our sorrow.
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"My dear Papa was a very special person who I think above all else would have been amazed by the reaction and the touching things that have been said about him and from that point of view we are, my family, deeply grateful for all that.
"It will sustain us in this particular loss and at this particularly sad time. Thank you."
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Today, Prince Charles will act as a guide and support to his mother, the Queen, as she continues her work as monarch without her husband of 73 years.
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Prince Philip Funeral - one minutes silence before entering the chapel
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