news details |
|
|
| Margaret Thatcher’s funeral: Coffin reaches Royal Hospital Chelsea | | | London: The United Kingdom is in mourning as it says adieu to the ‘Iron Lady’ Margaret Thatcher. The Baroness’ funeral service has begun at St Paul's Cathedral.
Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip were among over 2300 mourners from 170 countries, who attended the ceremonial funeral of Britain's most influential and divisive prime ministers.
Draped in a Union flag and adorned with white flowers, Thatcher’s coffin was taken from Westminster to St Paul's Cathedral in a gun carriage.
5.30 pm ISTThe Big ben which went silent as a mark of respect for Iron Lady will remain so for next 5 minutes.
5.00 pm IST Thatcher's coffin arrives at the Royal Hospital in Chelsea where her husband's ashes are as more crowds gather to get a final glimpse of Iron Lady. 4.50 pm IST The queen and her husband leave the cathedral along with other guests who head for the reception.
Two receptions will be held after the funeral. The one at Mansion House will be hosted by Foreign Secretary Wiliam Hague and will bge attended by foreign state representatives and other VIPs.
Other reception will be at Guildhall. It will be for friends and family of Margaret Thatcher and other senior ministers.
PM David Cameron and Thatcher's family will be attending both the receptions. 4.40 pm IST Crowds cheer as coffin leaves cathedral for the Royal Chelsea Hospital.
4.35 pm IST The coffin is being taken out of the cathedral as bells of St Paul ring out.
4.30 pmThe Archbishop of Canterbury delivers the blessing 4.19 pm IST Prayers being read
4.15 pm IST Richard Chartres, the Bishop of London, speaks at Thatcher's funeral. Thatcher knew that institutions and social capital were necessary to make market economics work. She believe in inter-dependence, he says
4.10 pm IST Prime Minister David Cameron gives the second reading
Earlier, the gun carriage and ceremonial procession set off from Westminster, to the sound of a funeral march played by a marching band as a silent crowd watches in respect.
The gun carriage was accompanied by Welsh Guards in ceremonial helmets.
Members of the Royal Horse Artillery, wearing red livery and busby hats, joined the bearing party around the coffin.
The attendees’ included British Prime Minister David Cameron -- of Thatcher's Conservative party -- plus US political figures Dick Cheney and Henry Kissinger, and the prime ministers of Canada, Israel, Italy, Poland and Kuwait.
Many in Britain have been cribbing about using the taxpayers’ money as the expenditure incurred in the funeral that is pegged at over 10 million pounds.
Although it is not officially a state funeral, Britain has pulled out all the stops for the Iron Lady, who transformed the country and helped end the Cold War during her 11 years in power.
The ceremony, nine days after Thatcher died from a stroke aged 87, is the first time the Queen has attended a prime ministerial funeral since Winston Churchill died in 1965.
However, the pomp and splendour have sparked criticism from those who argue that Thatcher was too polarising a figure to merit such a state-sponsored send-off. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
