The Passing of Queen Elizabeth II

[Aravar]

Of course, London will be mobbed, which is part of the problem. Perhaps people at her hotel can help out with suggestions for alternatives? As Aravar has suggested, the Maritime Museum at Greenwich (and the Royal Observatory) is very good, and on the south side of the river, so away from all the funeral parade etc.

Greenwich is only a 15 min train ride from London Bridge. If your daughter is staying near Bankside that station is probably a 15 min walk away.

[RoseMorninStar]

(I am trying not to take over the Passing of the Queen's page)

I haven't heard much from daughter, possibly due to internet/time difference issues. She has sent a few photos and they seem to be having a good time. In Edinburgh they had a list of things to see/do from Jude and in London they had advice from (I'm trying to think of their old TORC/HOF names.. Lidless and Estel?). I'm not sure what they'll do with the days they were to go to Buckingham palace, etc../ The Tower of London/ Westminster & St. Pauls. They had tickets for other things (like the London Eye, The Potions Room) so I'm not sure how far they can go or how much other plans will be disrupted. I would imagine some activities may be canceled while others are not, chopping up the days.

[Frelga]

Meanwhile, Russia is salty that putin was not invited to the funeral. I hope Russia will be above such pettiness when it's time to issue invitations to the UK officials.

Screenshot_20220914-162329.jpg (42.19 KiB) Viewed 3688 times

[Sunsilver]

The vigil of the Princes - Princess Anne was the first female to take part in this traditional vigil (see photo I posted above from Edinburgh). Now, another first: the Queen's 8 grandchildren stand vigil as her coffin lies in state in the hall at Westminister:

https://people.com/royals/incredibly-mo ... er-coffin/

[Sunsilver]

I have a Britbox subscription, and, of course, they are covering everything to do with the Queen's funeral, pretty much non-stop. They also have a 2 1/2 hour recording of the Queen's jubilee celebrations at Windsor. I mentioned this previously - how the Queen smiled and showed the most enthusiasm when the performances featured horses. And since the celebration coincided with the annual Windsor Horse show, there were LOTS of horses! Seeing the animation on her face, and watching her exclaim in delight, and chat with those sitting next to her makes it extremely hard to believe she could go so quickly. Yes, she had some mobility difficulties, but from what I see, she was still sharp as a tack mentally. Prince Philip, OTOH, definitely had a gradual decline, the first warning sign being when he was involved in an accident at Balmoral, and someone in the other car was fairly seriously hurt. He hung up his keys after that. He was also frequently in and out of the hospital in the last few years of his life. His death came as no surprise to anyone who was paying the least bit of attention.

But the Queen? Pfft...seems she sailed through a bout with COVID, and the only time she was hospitalized in recent years was for a bout of gastroenteritis! I really was shocked when I heard the news, and wish I knew what happened that brought her down so very suddenly. Of course, as is typical with the Royal Family, no one is saying.

[Heliona]

I don't know. For the past year or so, she'd been cancelling quite a few appearances. "Mobility issues" had always been cited as the reason, and certainly over the past year she'd been a lot frailer. I must say that I was not surprised. When they announced that she was resting and was comfortable and the medical staff were concerned, I knew it wasn't going to be long. I wasn't surprised at all. Mentally, she was clearly still spry, but I think physically the body wasn't up to it any more, and I suspect after Prince Philip died, the will might have gone.

[Sunsilver]

Yes, I'm sure Philip's death was a big factor. I have seen this so many times in my nursing and with family members that have been married for many years. My mother died only 10 months after my father. They were nearly 60 years married. I have often heard of elderly couples dying within days of each other.

[RoseMorninStar]

She did seem to be sharp right up to the end and then go fairly quickly. What I would wish for most people.

[Sunsilver]

The lineup of people waiting to pay their final respects to the Queen as she lies in state in Westminster is now approximately 6 km. long. This makes one thing glaringly obvious: the monarchy isn't going away any time soon, if the U.K public has anything to say about it.

And maybe that the Brits are barking mad.
However, interviews with those waiting in line reveals that quite a few of them have travelled from other countries to be there. And not just nearby countries either!

People lining up to see royalty is nothing new. When I was just 6 years old, the Queen came to Canada to open the St. Lawrence Seaway. She also visited quite a few cities across the country, including Toronto.

When our town, Weston, which was then not a part of Toronto, heard she'd be travelling along Jane St. to get to the Downsview Air Force Base, people lined up three and four deep along both sides of the street, and waited in the rain, just to catch a glimpse of her. I still remember it - despite the weather, she was in an open limousine, and she was wearing a fuchsia pink coat and hat. My father hoisted me onto his shoulders so I could see her.

[Sunsilver]

I just witnessed the signing of the declaration of Charles as king. It was witnessed by numerous people, the first being his son and heir, Prince William.

The document was signed with an old-fashioned pen that had to be dipped in ink. Prince William is a leftie. As a fellow leftie, having experienced using that type of pen in my early years at school, I really felt for him. It is SO hard to not smear the wet ink with your hand. And he just looked so awkward doing it. For one thing, the holders for the ink pots were on the left side of the desk, and he had to hook his hand around them.

[Frelga]

I don't have a corgi in this fight, but I admit I am surprised that the UK is just rolling over to a new king, without a serious discussion of what the monarchy is for and if it's still useful.

[RoseMorninStar]

I don't have a corgi in this fight, but I admit I am surprised that the UK is just rolling over to a new king, without a serious discussion of what the monarchy is for and if it's still useful.

There have been some discussions on the subject. Another. Several countries have commented on eventually cutting ties with the monarchy, New Zealand among them. TIME. I imagine they are waiting for a respectful time and a soft separation/waiting to see what Charles will do.

[Frelga]

I guess it's only been 10 days. It feels longer.

[RoseMorninStar]

Our daughter had tickets for Westminster Abbey tomorrow/the 19th. Do you think they'll let her in?

[Sunsilver]

There have been some discussions on the subject. Another. Several countries have commented on eventually cutting ties with the monarchy, New Zealand among them. TIME. I imagine they are waiting for a respectful time and a soft separation/waiting to see what Charles will do.

That sounds quite likely, Rose.

As to your other question, will they maybe let her go on Tuesday, or does she have to fly out that day?

[RoseMorninStar]

Yes, they are flying home Tuesday. They didn't get to see either palace (Edinburgh/Holyrood or London/Buckingham) or Westminster Abbey. I THINK they were able to see Edinburgh castle, I don't know for certain. I am not sure if they got to tour the Tower of London, that was supposed to be part of the plan for today. They have seen the long lines.

[samaranth]

I don't have a corgi in this fight, but I admit I am surprised that the UK is just rolling over to a new king, without a serious discussion of what the monarchy is for and if it's still useful.

There have been some discussions on the subject. Another. Several countries have commented on eventually cutting ties with the monarchy, New Zealand among them. TIME. I imagine they are waiting for a respectful time and a soft separation/waiting to see what Charles will do.

And also in Australia, where the question of becoming a republic has been simmering for many years.

However, it has been quite clearly stated that now is not the time to debate this. Our relatively new Labor government has other priority matters on its agenda to focus on, specifically the creation of an Indigenous Voice to Parliament, to allow a rush into discussion about republicanism.

(That being said, there has been considerable discussion here about why we are mourning the queen, who presided over a dynasty which colonized and forced dispossession of indigenous peoples – there is a distinct undercurrent of anger there.)

However, I think the push for a republic will gain momentum once farewells have concluded for the Queen, and over the next 12 months to the coronation of the King.

For me personally, I have found the ceremonies and rituals being performed fascinating, and also quite moving in some cases - particularly the vigils during the lying-in-state. I’ll be watching the funeral ceremonies tonight as well.

[Sunsilver]

Samaranth?? Wow, WELCOME BACK!

I just checked - your last posts here were in 2018-19!

And yes, I've heard that from a few people. Talked to someone from S. Africa last week, and he said how the Crown was disliked for many reasons, one being them having concentration camps during the Boer War.

But you can hardly blame the Queen for that, nor do I hold the British at fault for any of the awful things that happened in Canada in the colonial period. The indigenous people weren't treated any better in the United States than they were here, and most of the maltreatment happened after the Brits were kicked out. It's history - the best we can do is learn from it, try to make amends, and move on.

[Inanna]

India wants its kohinoor back from the Queen.

My friend has a work trip planned for this week in London. There were murmurs from the HR in the London office on shifting her dates. I was like “Are you crazy? You must go now!” She’s on the flight to London right now!

[RoseMorninStar]

Hi Samaranth!

The passing of the Queen is interesting from a historical perspective.. like a living part of ancient customs, something that is passing and not likely we'll see again.

Here's some of the Queen queue (I think).