A gathering like no other. An event like no other.
2000 guests, 500 foreign dignitaries including presidents, prime ministers, and monarchs, thousands of members of the public line the streets of London and billions watching around the world. That was the state funeral of the century, a ceremony on a scale not seen in Britain in some 70 years, and one that the New York Times, said was a funeral service and commemoration bigger than Winston Churchill’s.
Queen Elizabeth II, who ruled the United Kingdom for seven decades, brought the entire world together on Monday 19th September 2022 at 1100hrs at Westminster Abbey in what was dubbed, a summit of the global who’s who in the entire world.
In Nairobi, the UK High Commissioner to Kenya, Her Excellency Jane Marriott hosted a live streaming of the state funeral of Her Majesty The Queen, at her official residence in Muthaiga, Nairobi. It was a well-attended event by family & friends of both the United Kingdom and Kenya, with invited guests decked out in sombre black, the appropriate dress code for such an event. It was also a commemoration service to celebrate the life and times of HM Queen Elizabeth II.
The State Funeral which the BBC revealed was one of its biggest viewing days since the 2012 Olympics Closing Ceremony, was led by the Dean of Westminster, the Very Reverend Dr David Hoyle, and the Sermon given by the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend and Right Honourable Justin Welby. The Service paid tribute to The Queen’s remarkable reign and lifetime of service as Head of State, Nation and Commonwealth.
“Queen Elizabeth was a life well lived; a promise with destiny kept and she is mourned most deeply in her passing. That promise of lifelong service I renew to you all today,” said His Majesty The King while addressing the Nation and the Commonwealth. “I pay tribute to my mother’s memory, and I honour her life of service.”
Across the UK, big screens were put up, including in London’s Hyde Park, Sheffield’s Cathedral Square, Birmingham’s Centenary Square, Carlisle’s Bitts Park, Edinburgh’s Holyrood Park and Coleraine Town Hall in Northern Ireland. Cinemas across the UK were also opening their screens to show the funeral – bringing together local communities to commemorate.
Britain’s last state funeral was for Winston Churchill, whose powerful send-off on a bitterly cold January day in 1965 was proclaimed “the last time that London would be the capital of the world.”
