Queen Elizabeth was laid to rest alongside her beloved husband on Monday (Sep 19) after a day which saw Britain and the world pay a final farewell to the nation's longest-reigning monarch, in a dazzling show of pomp and ceremony.
Amid formality and careful choreography, there were moments of raw emotion. Late in the day an ashen-faced King Charles held back tears, while grief was etched on the faces of several members of the royal family.
Huge crowds thronged the streets of London and at Windsor Castle to witness the moving, grand processions and ceremonies.
"Few leaders receive the outpouring of love that we have seen," Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, told the congregation at the state funeral in the majestic Westminster Abbey, where monarchs have been married, buried and crowned over the last 1,000 years.
Among the 2,000 congregation were some 500 presidents, prime ministers, foreign royal family members and dignitaries, including Joe Biden of the United States.
Outside hundreds of thousands had crammed into the capital to honour Elizabeth, whose death at the age of 96 has prompted an outpouring of gratitude for her 70 years on the throne.
Many more lined the route as the hearse took her coffin from London to Windsor, throwing flowers, cheering and clapping as it passed from the city to the English countryside that she loved so much.
At St George's Chapel in Windsor Castle, some 800 guests attended a more intimate committal service which concluded with the crown, orb and sceptre – symbols of the monarch's power and governance – being removed from the coffin and placed on the altar.
The Lord Chamberlain, the most senior official in the royal household, then broke his 'Wand of Office', signifying the end of his service to the sovereign, and placed it on the casket which then slowly descended into the royal vault.
As the congregation sang "God Save the King", King Charles, who faces a huge challenge to maintain the appeal of the monarchy as economic hardship looms in Britain, appeared to be fighting back tears.
It was in the same vast building that the queen was photographed alone, mourning her husband of 73 years, Prince Philip, during the pandemic lockdown, reinforcing the sense of a monarch in synch with her people during testing times.
Later on Monday evening, in a private family service, the coffins of Elizabeth and Philip, who died last year aged 99, were moved from the vault to be buried together in the same chapel where her father, King George VI, mother, and sister, Princess Margaret, also rest.
Elizabeth died on Sep 8 at Balmoral Castle, her summer home in the Scottish highlands.
Bangladesh PM joins Queen Elizabeth's funeral
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday (Sep 19) joined the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II along with other world leaders at Westminster Abbey in London.
Hundreds of dignitaries are there including the Queen's former prime ministers as well as US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron.
Sheikh Rehana, younger sister of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, also joined the funeral.
Queen's funeral service took place at Westminster Abbey – the building in which she was married and crowned.
Her coffin, draped in flags and topped by the Imperial State Crown, was drawn to the church on a gun carriage by Royal Navy sailors.
On Sep 15, Sheikh Hasina arrived in London on an official visit to the United Kingdom to attend the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.
A sombre mood on the streets around Buckingham Palace is reigning where people are gathering to watch a procession after the service.
It will take the Queen's coffin on a final journey through London and on to Windsor Castle for a second service.
Earlier, on Sunday morning, Sheikh Hasina along with her younger sister Sheikh Rehana went to the Palace of Westminster to pay their last respect to the late Queen where the body of Elizabeth II was kept in the Lying-in-State. She paid respect to the Queen at her lying-in-state in Westminster Hall and signed a book of condolence at Lancaster House. Sheikh Rehana also signed the condolence book.
