Prince Philip Laid to Rest in Windsor Castle Vault


By Oliver Ngwenya    17-Apr-2021 20:43 UTC+02:00

Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh finally laid to rest. Photo: NBC News

Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, was laid to rest on Saturday in the Royal Vault at the Windsor Castle following his death on the 9th of April at the British castle. Prince Philip, the husband of Queen Elizabeth II, is said to have died peacefully even though the British Royalty did not disclose the cause of death. He died at the age of 99, just two months before his 100th birthday.

The Duke of Edinburgh, who is the longest-serving royal consort, had his coffin carried by a military green Land Rover Defender that the duke himself helped design instead of the usual hearse. The Defender was followed by the Royal Bentley, which carried the queen, who was clad in all black with a white trimmed black mask. In keeping with the English tradition, there followed the heir to the throne, Prince Charles with his sister, Princess Anne followed closely by their two siblings, Prince Edward, and Prince Andrew. Bringing up the rear were Princes, William, and Harry. As the procession made its arduous way to St George’s Chapel for Prince Phillip’s funeral service, the military band could be heard playing numbers such as Nimrod, I Vow to Thee My Country and Jerusalem, most of which the Duke himself had helped select specifically for the funeral service which was code-named Operation Forth Bridge.

As a sign of Prince Charles’s diverse heritage, atop the coffin, lay his naval cap and sword in recognition of his service in the British Navy, Danish Court of Arms, and Greek Cross in recognition of his heritage of both nationalities as well as stripes of the Mountbatten family, which was his family lineage.

The procession that was led by the Band of the Grenadier Guards followed by military chiefs made a stop for a national minute of silence at 3 pm before proceeding to the chapel for the final service which was conducted by the Dean of Windsor, David Conner, who committed the soul of the prince into the hands of God during the service before proceeding with the burial in the Windsor Castle Royal Vault.


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