Sophie Wessex comforts Princess Anne as Queens coffin carried into Holyroodhouse
The Countess of Wessex was pictured comforting Princess Anne as she watched Queen Elizabeth II's coffin being carried into the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh on Sunday.
Sophie Wessex, 57, the wife of Prince Edward, 58, could be seen placing her hand on the Princess Royal's back in a supportive gesture as the coffin arrived after a six-hour drive from Balmoral.
The Queen's children and their spouses watched on in solemn silence as soldiers from the Royal Regiment of Scotland carried the coffin to the Palace's Throne Room, where it will remain overnight.
In the emotional moment, deference to the monarch was still observed, with the royal women curtseying and the men bowing their heads.
Earlier on Sunday morning, The Queen’s coffin begun the first stage of the journey to Her Majesty's final resting place with Anne and her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, in a limousine as part of a procession directly behind her.
The Queen’s coffin will remain at Holyroodhouse's Throne Room overnight after a six-hour drive from Balmoral on Sunday.
It will then travel in a procession to St Giles' Cathedral, Edinburgh, along the Royal Mile with the King and the late Queen's other children the Princess Royal, the Duke of York and the Earl of Wessex following behind on foot, along with Anne's husband.
Camilla, now Queen Consort, and the Countess of Wessex will follow by car and also attend the service in St Giles.
The Crown of Scotland will be placed on the coffin as it is carried inside. There, she will lie at rest until Tuesday. Mourners will be able to view the Queen’s coffin in Edinburgh from 5pm on Monday September 12, officials have confirmed.
A queuing system will be in place with security checks and restrictions on mobile phones will apply.
On Tuesday evening, Princess Anne will accompany her mother’s body on an RAF flight back to London and on to Buckingham Palace, to be greeted by Charles and Camilla.
On Wednesday at 2.22pm, adorned with the Imperial State Crown, the coffin will be taken in procession on a Gun Carriage of the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery to the Palace of Westminster, where she will lie in state in Westminster Hall for four days.
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Hundreds of thousands of mourners are expected along the route of the silent procession, similar to the state funeral of the Queen's father, King George VI, in 1952.
Once at Westminster Hall the Queen will lie in state in a closed coffin and members of the public can file past, saying their final goodbyes.
The Queen will remain here until 6.30am on Monday September 19, when the coffin will be taken to Westminster Abbey for her state funeral.
After the funeral she will travel to Windsor Castle, where she will be laid to rest in St George’s Chapel alongside her beloved late husband, Prince Philip.
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