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Funeral of Prince Philip, the Royal Family dressed in mourning
In the end it all went like the Prince Philip he had asked, though he surely would not have wanted his death to come at such a difficult time for the family. The funeral of the Duke of Edinburgh could have been an opportunity to bring the Prince William and Harry, but this was not the case, at least judging from the images that saw them walking behind the Land Rover that carried the coffin.
The children of Lady Diana did not even look at each other, they participated in the procession as expected, in the same row, separated from their cousin Peter Philips, son of Princess Anne, without ever giving the idea of wanting to show a sign of giving up , step back.
Images in stark contrast to those that saw them united in pain for the loss of their mother, in that 1997 procession that is still vivid in everyone’s mind.
Not a good sign, initially, for those hoping for a reconciliation between the two brothers, for which we will have to wait a little longer.
A distance, that between Harry and the Royal Family, which appeared evident even once the funeral began, inside the ceppella: the Prinicipe was at the bottom of a row of seats, far from the cousins due to the anti-Covid provisions. But it appeared more alone than ever.
Philip, however, may have managed, despite his absence, to act as peacemaker. At the exit of the function, in fact, Harry first approached Kate, and then walked next to William. A certain coldness was evident, the days when the two brothers jostled or joked are long gone. Or again, as on the day of the wedding of the Duke of Cambridge to Kate, they force each other. Now they are two men with their differences of opinion trying to save their relationship. And the one seen at the end of the funeral could be the first step.
Kate Middleton and Camilla did not take part in the procession, but waited for the monarch outside the porch of the chapel. The Duchess of Cambridge, very elegant in her black dress and string of pearls, appeared particularly distressed, but as always she managed to maintain the required demeanor.
The ceremony, as mentioned, took place exactly as planned, that is, as Prince Philip had described in every detail, from the Land Rover that he himself had designed to the songs, from the type of rite (deliberately not of state) to the memorabilia.
What aroused greater dismay among the subjects, however, was the image of Queen Elizabeth entering the chapel of St. George, accompanied by the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby: Her Majesty gave the idea of being vulnerable, she looked more hunched over and showed, perhaps for the first time, all her years. Her gaze, always imperturbable, this time seemed dull, turned downwards: the thought of that husband who has been by her side for over 70 years, always a step backwards, without ever letting her lack his support. Dignity and composure, as always. But this time she could not hold back a tear, as she followed the procession in her Bentley, immediately dried before getting out of the car to say goodbye to her great love and best friend for the last time.
In the meantime, Meghan Markle through her spokesperson she made it known that she would watch the ceremony on television and that she had entrusted her husband Harry with a handwritten note to be affixed to the wreath with which the couple paid homage to Prince Philip. A gesture demonstrating the good relationship that bound the Duchess of Sussex to her grandfather in law, who knew well what it meant to feel like a stranger in the family, given that for a long time it was he who had to integrate into the complicated court system.
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