UK: The State Funeral and the Committal Service for Queen Elizabeth II

The State Funeral and the Committal Service for Queen Elizabeth II, who died on 8 September 2022, took place on Monday 19 September 2022.

Screen shot of the order of service for the State Funeral.

Screen shot of the order of service for the Committal of Queen Elizabeth II.

Three ceremonies took place on Monday - the State Funeral, the Committal Service and the internment service. The latter was private, and we don't know how many who actually attended it or who. But we know that around 2000 people attended the State Funeral.

The State Funeral Service at Westminster Abbey was attended by heads of state and overseas government representatives, including members of many foreign royal families, governors general and Realm prime ministers, as the official website describes it. Other representatives of the Realms and the Commonwealth, the Orders of Chivalry including recipients of the Victoria Cross and George Cross, government, parliament, devolved parliaments and assemblies, the church, and Queen Elizabeth's patronages formed the congregation, along with other public representatives.

The State Funeral service was conducted by the Dean of Westminster, David Michael Hoyle. During the Service, the Prime Minister, Liz Truss, and the Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Patricia Scotland, read lessons. The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, the Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, Iain Greenshields, and the Free Churches Moderator, Helen Cameron, said prayers. The sermon was given by the Archbishop of Canterbury, who also gave the commendation. Finally the Dean of Westminster pronounced the blessing. The Order of Service can be read here.

The Committal service at St. George's Chapel at Windsor was supposed to take place at 4 p.m., but was delayed by at least 40 minutes. The King and Queen, other members of the British royal family and representatives of other royal families were in attendance, besides past and present members of The Queen’s Household, including members  from the private estates, as stated by the official website. Also in attendance were governors general and Realm prime ministers. 

The service was conducted by the Dean of Windsor, David John Conner, with prayers said by the Rector of Sandringham, Paul Williams, the Minister of Crathie Kirk, Kenneth Mackenzie, and the Chaplain of Windsor Great Park, Martin Poll. 

Prior to the final hymn, the Imperial state crown, the orb and the sceptre was removed from the Queen's coffin and placed on the altar. At the end of the final hymn, King Charles placed the Queen's Company Camp Colour of the Grenadier Guards on the coffin. At the same time, The Lord Chamberlain, the Lord Parker of Minsmere (Andrew David Parker), «broke» his Wand of Office and placed it on the coffin.

When the Queen's coffin was lowered into the Royal Vault, the Dean of Windsor said a psalm and the commendation before the Garter King of Arms, David Vines White, pronounced HM Quen Elizabeth II's styles and titles.

The Sovereign’s Piper, Paul Burns, played a Lament and the Archbishop of Canterbury pronounced the blessing. The national anthem was sung at the conclusion of the Service. The Order of Service can be read here.

It was a day I will remember for ever, and I am pleased that I decided to take the day off to witness the events of the day on TV. It was a most dignified fare well of a very much belowed sovereign. The services were simple and magnificent at the same time. All the people along the route from Westminster Abbey to Windsor Castle. The procession at the Long Walk heading up to Windsor ... the removal of the crown, the orb and the sceptre from the coffin was very moving, as was listening to the national anthem being sung at the end of the service. 

A summary of the services can be read from the Court Circular 19 September 2022:

Buckingham Palace

The Coffin bearing The late Queen Elizabeth II was conveyed from Westminster Hall on the State Gun Carriage of the Royal Navy this morning, drawn by Naval Ratings, and flanked by His Majesty's Body Guard of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms, The King's Body Guard of the Yeomen of the Guard and The King's Body Guard for Scotland (the Royal Company of Archers), followed by The King, The Prince of Wales, The Duke of Sussex, The Duke of York, The Earl of Wessex, The Princess Royal, The Duke of Gloucester, the Earl of Snowdon and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence and thence to Westminster Abbey.

The Lord Great Chamberlain, the Earl Marshal, the Lord Speaker and Speaker witnessed the departure of the Coffin bearing Her late Majesty from the Palace of Westminster.

The State Funeral of The late Queen Elizabeth II was held in Westminster Abbey today at 11 o'clock.

The Imperial State Crown, the Orb and the Sceptre surmounted the Coffin of Her late Majesty.

The King and The Queen Consort, The Prince and Princess of Wales with Prince George of Wales and Princess Charlotte of Wales, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, The Duke of York, Princess Beatrice, Mrs. Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi and Mr. Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, Princess Eugenie, Mrs. Jack Brooksbank and Mr. Jack Brooksbank, The Earl and Countess of Wessex with the Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor and Viscount Severn, The Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, Mr. Peter Phillips, Mr. and Mrs. Michael Tindall, The Earl of Snowdon, Viscount Linley and The Lady Margarita Armstrong-Jones, Mr. Daniel and The Lady Sarah Chatto, Mr. Samuel Chatto and 2nd Lieutenant Arthur Chatto, RM, The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, Earl and Countess of Ulster with Lord Culloden and The Lady Cosima Windsor, The Lady Davina Lewis with Miss Senna Lewis, Mr. George and The Lady Rose Gilman with Miss Lyla Gilman, The Duke of Kent, Earl and Countess of St. Andrews, The Lord Nicholas Windsor with Master Albert Windsor and Master Leopold Windsor, Mr. Timothy and The Lady Helen Taylor with Mr. Columbus Taylor, Mr. Cassius Taylor, Miss Estella Taylor and Miss Eloise Taylor, Lord Downpatrick, The Lady Marina-Charlotte Windsor, The Lady Amelia Windsor, Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, The Lord and Lady Frederick Windsor, Mr. Thomas and The Lady Gabriella Kingston, Princess Alexandra, the Hon. Lady Ogilvy, Mr. and Mrs. James Ogilvy, Mr. Alexander Ogilvy, Mr. and Mrs. Timothy Vesterberg, Miss Marina Ogilvy, Miss Zenouska Mowatt and Mr. Christian Mowatt.

Members of Foreign Royal Families and other Dignitaries, the Doyen of the Diplomatic Corps and Senior High Commissioners, Heads of Mission and other Foreign Representatives attended.

The Dean of Westminster conducted the Service and pronounced the Blessing.

The Archbishop of Canterbury preached the Sermon and offered the Commendatory Prayer.

His Majesty's Body Guard of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms, The King's Body Guard of the Yeomen of the Guard and The King's Body Guard for Scotland (the Royal Company of Archers) were on duty.

The King's Guard was turned out with the State Colour on the Forecourt of Buckingham Palace.

A Guard of Honour found by the Royal Navy, the Army and the Royal Air Force, with the Band of the Royal Marines was formed up in Parliament Square.

After the Service the Coffin bearing The late Queen Elizabeth II was conveyed from Westminster Abbey on the State Gun Carriage to Wellington Arch, Hyde Park Corner.

The Coffin bearing Her late Majesty was transferred from the State Gun Carriage to the State Hearse and thence to Windsor Castle.

The Committal Service for The late Queen Elizabeth II took place in St. George's Chapel today at 4 o'clock.

The Members of the Royal Family were present.

List of attendees

It has not been easy to compile a survey of people who attended the State Funeral at Westminster Abbey and/or the Committal Service at the St. Georges's Chapel at Windsor. I watched both events, but the cameras didn't focus much on the foreign royal families and other dignitaries. I have taken most names from various newspapers, including The Telegraph and The Guardian, but have also depended on Wikipedia and contributions on the website Nobiliana.de as well as on Twitter from Arabian Royal Agency, Rodrigo, Lucas Szkopinski and Netty Leistra (Netty Royal) among others. Some only attended the state funeral, others only the committal service, while others again, like Crown Prince Hussein of Jordan only attended the reception at Buckingham Palace the day before the funeral. I have tried to focus on the royals and royal relations, but have also included some of the dignitaries, mainly from the Commonwealth and from Europe. Most of the list consist of attendees at the State Funeral, I should add. I am sure there are mistakes and important omissions - please tell if I have mentioned some who were not present. Not all the media reports have been accurate. 

The British Royal Family (and relatives)

• King  Charles III and Queen Camilla
• The Prince and Princess of Wales
• Prince George of Wales
• Princess Charlotte of Wales
• The Duke and Duchess of Sussex
• The Duke of York
• Sarah, Duchess of York
• Princess Beatrice of York & Mr Edo Mapelli Mozzi,
• Princess Eugenie of York & Mr Jack Brooksbank
• The Earl & Countess of Wessex and Forfar,
• Louise Mountbatten-Windsor 
• Viscount Severn
• The Princess Royal (Princess Anne) & Sir Timothy Laurence, 
• Peter Phillips
• Savannah Phillips (only the committal service) 
• Miss Isla Phillips (only the committal service)
• Zara and Mike Tindall 
• Mia Tindall (only the committal service) 
• The Earl of Snowdon
• Viscount Linley
• Lady Margarita Armstrong-Jones
• Lady Sarah Chatto and Daniel Chatto
• Samuel Chatto
• Arthur Chatto
• The Duke & Duchess of Gloucester, 
• The Earl and Countess of Ulster,
• Lord Culloden 
• Lady Cosima Windsor 
• Lady Davina Windsor 
• Senna Lewis
• Lady Rose and George Gilman 
• Lyla Gilman
• The Duke of Kent
• The Earl and Countess of St. Andrews
• Lord Downpatrick
• Lady Marina Charlotte Windsor
• Lady Amelia Windsor
• Lord Nicholas Windsor
• Albert Windsor
• Leopold Windsor
• Lady Helen Taylor and & Tim Taylor
• Columbus Taylor
• Cassius Taylor
• Eloise Taylor
• Estella Taylor
• Prince and Princess Michael of Kent
• Lord Frederick Windsor and Lady Sophie Windsor
• Lady Gabriella Kingston and Tom Kingston
• Princess Alexandra, the Hon. Lady Ogilvy
• James Ogilvy and Julia Ogilvy
• Alexander Ogilvy
• Flora Vesterberg and Tim Vesterberg
• Marina Ogilvy
• Christian Mowatt
• Zenouska Mowatt
• The Duke and Duchess of Fife 
• Countess Mountbatten of Burma
• Alexandra Hooper and Tom Hooper
• Lady Pamela Hicks
  India Flint Wood
• Edwina Hicks

Reigning European royal and princely houses

• King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of the Belgians
• Queen Margrethe II of Denmark
• Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark
• Hereditary Prince Alois and Hereditary Princess Sofie of Liechtenstein
• Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg
• Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene of Monaco
• King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima of the Netherlands
• Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands
• King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway
• King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain
• King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia of Spain
• King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden

Former European royal and princely houses

• Margravine Valerie of Baden
• Hereditary Prince Bernhard and Hereditary Princess Stephanie of Baden
• King Simeon II of the Bulgarians
• Queen Anne-Marie of the Hellenes
• Crown Prince Pavlos and Crown Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece
• Princess Theodora of Greece (service at Windsor only)
• Landgrave Donatus and Landgravine Floria of Hesse
• Prince Philipp and Princess Saskia of Hohenlohe-Langenburg
• Princess Xenia of Hohenlohe-Langenburg
• Princess Margarita of Romania and Radu Duda
• Crown Prince Alexander and Crown Princess Katherine of Serbia

Royal and princely houses outside Europe

• The Crown Prince of Bahrain, Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa
• King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and Queen Jetsun Pema of Bhutan
• The Sultan of Brunei, Hassanal Bolkiah ibni Omar Ali Saifuddien II
• Prince Abdul Mateen of Brunei
• Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako of Japan
• King Abdullah II and Queen Rania of Jordan 
• Princess Haya bint Hussein of Jordan (committal service only)
• Prince Hassan and Princess Sarvath of Jordan (committal service only)
• The Crown Prince of Kuwait, Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah
• King Letsie III of Lesotho
• The Yang di-Pertuan Agong XVI (King) of Malaysia, Sultan Abdullah of Pahang, and the Raja Permaisuri Agong (Queen), Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah
• Prince Moulay Rashid of Morocco
• The Sultan of Oman, Haitham bin Tariq Al Said
• The Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad al Thani
• Sheikh Hamad Bin Abdullah Al Thani of Qatar and Sheikha Jawaher bint Hamad
• Sheikha Amna Bint Mohammed Al Thani 
• Prince Faisal bin Turki of Saudi Arabia
• King Tupoi VI of Tonga
• The Vice President of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Emir of Dubai

Others

• The Māori King, Tūheitia Potatau Te Wherowhero VII and Makau Ariki Te Atawhai

A selection of other dignitaries

United Kingdom

• The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Liz Truss and Hugh O'Leary
• Leader of the Labour Party, Keir Starmer

Former British prime ministers

• Boris Johnson and Carrie Symonds
• Theresa May and Sir Philip May
• David Cameron and Samantha Cameron
• George Brown and Sarah Brown
• Tony Blair and Cherie Blair
• John  Major and Norma Major

Other dignitaries

• The President of Albania, Bajram Begaj, and the First Lady, Armanda Begaj
• The Co-Prince of Andorra, Archbishop Joan Enric Vives i Sicília 
• The Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda, Sir Rodney Williams and Lady Williams
• The Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Gaston Browne
• The President of Armenia, Vahagn Khachaturyan
• The Governor-General of Australia, David Hurley and Linda Hurley
• The Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese and Jodie Haydon
• The President of Austria, Alexander Van der Bellen and First Lady Doris Schmidauer
• The Governor-General of the Bahamas, Sir Cornelius A. Smith,
• The Prime Minister of the Bahamas, Philip Davis
• The  Governor-General of Belize, Froyla Tzalam and Daniel Mendez
• The Governor of Bermuda, Rena Lalgie
• The Premier of Bermuda, E. David Burt
• The President of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro and the First Lady, Michelle Bolsonaro
• The President of Bulgaria, Rumen Radev and the First Lady, Desislava Radeva
• The Governor General of Canada, Mary Simon, and Whit Fraser
• Michaëlle Jean, former Governor General of Canada
• David Johnston, former Governor General of Canada
• The Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau and Sophie Grégoire Trudeau
• The Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Patricia Scotland
• The President of Croatia, Zoran Milanović and the First Lady, Sanja Musić Milanović
• The Prime Minister of the Czech Republic Petr Fiala
• The President of Estonia, Alar Karis and the First Lady, Sirje Karis
• The President of Ethiopia, Sahle-Work Zewde 
• The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen
• The President of Finland, Sauli Niinistö and the First Lady Jenni Haukio
• The President of France, Emmanuel Macron (also Co-Prince of Andorra) and Brigitte Macron
• The President of Georgia, Salome Zourabichvili
• The President of Germany, Frank-Walter Steinmeier and the First Lady, Elke Büdenbender
• The President of Greece, Katerina Sakellaropoulou
• The Governor-General of Grenada, Cécile La Grenade
• The Secretary of State of the Holy See, Bishop Paul Gallagher
• The President of Hungary, Katalin Novák and the First Gentleman, István Attila Veres
• The President of Iceland, Guðni Th. Jóhannesson and the First Lady, Eliza Reid
• The Prime Minister of Ireland, Micheál Martin and Sabina Higgins
• The President of Israel, Isaac Herzog and the First Lady, Michal Herzog
• The President of Italy, Sergio Mattarella
• The Governor General of Jamaica, Sir Patrick Allen
• The Prime Minister of Jamaica, Andrew Holness
• The President of Kenya, William Ruto
• The President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani and the First Gentleman, Prindon Sadriu
• The President of Latvia, Egils Levits and the First Lady, Andra Levite
• The President of Lithuania and the First Lady, Diana Nausėdienė
• The President of Moldova, Maia Sandu
• The President of Montenegro Milo Đukanović and the First Lady, Lidija Đukanović
• The Governor-General of New Zealand Cindy Kiro
• Silvia Cartwright, former Governor-General of New Zealand
• The Prime Minister of New Zealand, Jacinda Ardern and Clarke Gayford
• The President of North Macedonia Stevo Pendarovski and the First Lady, Elizabeta Gjorgievska
• The Governor General of Papua New Guinea, H.E. Sir Bob Dadae 
• The Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, James Marape
• The President of Poland, Andrzej Duda and the First Lady, Agata Kornhauser-Duda
• The President of Portugal Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa 
• The President of Romania Klaus Iohannis and the First Lady, Carmen Iohannis
• The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saint Kitts and Nevis, Denzil Douglas
• The Acting Governor-General of Saint Lucia, Errol Charles 
• The Governor-General of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Susan Dougan
• The Head of State of Samoa, H.H. Tuimalealiʻifano Vaʻaletoʻa Sualauvi II
• The Captains Regent of San Marino, Oscar Mina and Paolo Rondelli
• The Governor General of Solomon Islands, H.E. Sir David Vunagi
• The President of Slovakia, Zuzana Čaputová
• The President of Slovenia, Borut Pahor 
• The President of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa
• The President of South Korea Yoon Suk-yeol and the First Lady Kim Keon-hee
• The President of Switzerland, Ignazio Cassis
• The President of Tanzania, Samia Suluh
• The Governor General of Tuvalu, H.E. Tofinga Vaevalu Falani
• The Prime Minister of Tuvalu, Tuvalu Kausea Natano 
• The First Lady of Ukraine, Olena Zelenska
• The President of the USA, Joe Biden and the First Lady, Jill Biden