London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 11, 2025

Queen Elizabeth II's cortege met by huge crowds in Edinburgh

Queen Elizabeth II's cortege met by huge crowds in Edinburgh

Queen Elizabeth II's coffin has been brought to Edinburgh following a six-hour journey from Balmoral.

Mourners lined the streets as the hearse travelled from Aberdeenshire to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, where her coffin will rest overnight.

A respectful silence fell as people waited for the procession to pass by before they burst into polite applause and cheers.

Crowds also gathered to hear King Charles III proclaimed across the UK.

He will travel up to Scotland on Monday and will be joined by members of the Royal Family as he accompanies his mother's coffin to the cathedral in the Scottish city.

The Queen's cortege left her home at Balmoral at around 10:00 BST, winding through Aberdeen and Dundee among other villages and towns, on its way to Edinburgh.

Her coffin will lie under vigil in St Giles' Cathedral on Monday before heading to London ahead of her funeral on Monday 19 September.

In Ballater, Aberdeenshire, near Balmoral, flowers were thrown into the road ahead of the cortege by mourners.

Down the road in Aboyne, pipes played as a hush fell over the village and the procession passed by, with one voice saying "you're on your way now".

In a field near Aberdeen farmers paid tribute by lining up their tractors.

As the cortege drove through Edinburgh city centre silence fell before there was applause from the crowd that had gathered.

Thousands of people lined Edinburgh's Royal Mile, waiting sombrely to pay their respects.

There was applause from mourners as the Queen's cortege travelled through the city centre

People lined streets in cities, towns and villages as the sombre journey continued

Pallbearers carried the coffin into Holyroodhouse - the monarch's official Scottish residence


The Princess Royal, Princess Anne, travelled in the second car of the cortege on the 175-mile journey, accompanied by her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence.

She curtsied as her mother's coffin was carried into Holyroodhouse - the monarch's official residence in Scotland - where it will lie at rest in the throne room.

The Duke of York and Earl and Countess of Wessex, who were there to receive the coffin, also bowed and curtsied respectively, alongside palace staff.

The country is in a period of national mourning until after the Queen's funeral next Monday.

A series of constitutional and ceremonial events will take place over the coming days following her death aged 96 on Thursday.

Earlier at the start of the journey, six gamekeepers from her Balmoral estate placed the Queen's oak coffin into a hearse before she left Balmoral, her beloved private Scottish estate, for the final time.

The wreath on top of the coffin featured some of the Queen's favourite flowers, all cut from the estate - white heather, dahlias and sweet peas, phlox and pine fir.

When the cortege reached Ballater, Aberdeenshire - the closest village to Balmoral - flowers were thrown in the road by mourners, many of whom regard the Queen and the Royal Family as neighbours.


The coffin will remain under continuous vigil for 24 hours at St Giles' Cathedral, with the public able to pay their respects.

A service will be held at the cathedral in the evening.

The following day, Princess Anne will accompany her mother's coffin as it travels by plane from Edinburgh Airport back to Buckingham Palace, via RAF Northolt in north-west London.

Crowds watch the funeral cortege of the Queen travel over the Queensferry Bridge

The cortege's six-hour journey came to an end in Edinburgh


Among those in the crowds was Dillion Hay, who was visiting Edinburgh from Bangor in Northern Ireland, said he had a flight to catch later but had come to pay his respects while he could.

"I've actually found it emotional on behalf of my nanny, I rang her and she was in floods of tears," he said.

Linda McKichen, 60, arrived four hours early to see the cortege and said it was a "heart-breaking" occasion.

"It's like losing my mum. She's never not been in my life. This is a historic event, we'll certainly never have another queen like her," she said.

Meanwhile, in Windsor, thousands gathered in the town to pay tribute to the Queen.

Roads were closed, as floral tributes and cards continued to be placed outside the castle gates.

And in Green Park, near Buckingham Palace, thousands more floral tributes were placed in memory of the Queen.

Well-wishers view floral tributes to the Queen left in Green Park near Buckingham Palace


Crowds had also gathered to hear King Charles III officially proclaimed monarch in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

While he became king the moment his mother died, at a meeting of the Accession Council at St James's Palace on Saturday, he was formally confirmed in the role.

The proclamation has now been read in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, as well as in other parts of England and in overseas territories.

Crowds gathered in the Royal Mile in Edinburgh for the proclamation


The King was cheered by hundreds of well-wishers as he travelled to Buckingham Palace from nearby Clarence House to carry out audiences with representatives of the Commonwealth.

There he met with the Commonwealth Secretary General Baroness Scotland - who publicly represents the association of 56 countries with historical ties to the UK.

King Charles met Baroness Patricia Scotland, Commonwealth secretary general, at Buckingham Palace


Later, the King hosted a reception for High Commissioners - ambassadors - from the 14 Commonwealth realms where he is also head of state, before meeting with the Dean of Windsor.

On Monday, he will visit Westminster Hall where both Houses of Parliament will express their condolences, before beginning his first trip around all four nations of the UK as monarch by flying to Scotland.

In his new role as Prince of Wales, Prince William spoke of his honour at being asked to serve the Welsh people in a call with First Minister of Wales Mark Drakeford.


Watch: The Queen’s coffin travels from Balmoral to Edinburgh

Aerials show the Queen's last journey from Balmoral


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
Pig Heads Left Outside Multiple Paris Mosques in Outrage-Inducing Acts
Nvidia’s ‘Wow’ Factor Is Fading. The AI chip giant used to beat Wall Street expectations for earnings by a substantial margin. That trajectory is coming down to earth.
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
On the Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s Death: Prince Harry Returns to Britain
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Murdoch Family Finalises $3.3 Billion Succession Pact, Ensuring Eldest Son’s Leadership
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Court Staff Cover Up Banksy Image of Judge Beating a Protester
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
Elon Musk Poised to Become First Trillionaire Under Ambitious Tesla Pay Plan
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
Burning the Minister’s House Helped Protesters to Win Justice: Prabowo Fires Finance Minister in Wake of Indonesia Protests
Brazil Braces for Fallout from Bolsonaro Trial by corrupted judge
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
Nearly 40 Years Later: Nike Changes the Legendary Slogan Just Do It
Generations Born After 1939 Unlikely to Reach Age One Hundred, New Study Finds
End to a four-year manhunt in New Zealand: the father who abducted his children to the forests was killed, the three siblings were found
Germany Suspends Debt Rules, Funnels €500 Billion Toward Military and Proxy War Strategy
EU Prepares for War
BMW Eyes Growth in China with New All‑Electric Neue Klasse Lineup
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
US Justice Department Launches Criminal Mortgage-Fraud Probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
US and Taiwanese Defence Officials Held Secret Talks in Alaska
Report: Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission in North Korea Ordered by Trump in 2019 Ended in Failure
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Florida Murder Case: The Adelson Family, the Killing of Dan Markel, and the Trial of Donna Adelson
×