In the United Kingdom, state funerals are usually reserved for monarchs. The most recent was the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II on 19 September 2022.

A state funeral may also be held to honour a highly distinguished figure following the approval of the monarch and Parliament (of the expenditure of public funds). The last non-royal state funeral in the United Kingdom was that of Sir Winston Churchill on 30 January 1965.

Other funerals, including those of senior members of the British royal family and high-ranking public figures, may share many of the characteristics of a state funeral without being categorised as such; for these, the term "ceremonial funeral" is used. In the past fifty years, ceremonial funerals have been held for Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma (1979); Diana, Princess of Wales (1997); Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother (2002); Margaret Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (2013); and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (2021). Ceremonial funerals have tended in general to follow the ritual patterns of a state funeral (if on a somewhat smaller scale).

An exception was the funeral of the Duke of Windsor (former King Edward VIII), in 1972. Although the exiled Duke opted for a private family event instead of a full state funeral, it had one distinctive feature of a sovereign's funeral: traditional recitation of Edward's titles as monarch by the Garter King of Arms.the Garter King of Arms proclaimed him "sometime the most high, most mighty and most excellent monarch Edward VIII", in addition to his other titles and honourshttp://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/5/newsid_2496000/2496577.stm

A gun carriage has been used to transport the coffin between locations since Queen Victoria's funeral (1901); it is also accompanied by a procession of military bands and detachments along with mourners and other officials. There may also be a lying in state and other associated ceremonies.

Features of a state funeral

Overview State funeral customs have evolved over time. For the funeral service itself, the Book of Common Prayer has been used in recent centuries, with readings from the Authorized Version of the Bible; in its essentials the form of service used is the same for a monarch as for any other person. Besides the presence of national and international dignitaries in large numbers, much of the distinctive character of a state funeral is set by the processions surrounding the conveyance of the coffin from place to place, and by the lying-in-state which generally precedes the funeral (until the 21st century these were the only elements that could be seen by members of the public). In many respects the obsequies of Queen Victoria in 1901 set the tone for the modern state funeral, with her desire to be buried "as a soldier's daughter" (the use of a gun carriage to transport the coffin, for example, dates from this time). The next three state funerals of a monarch (those of King Edward VII in 1910, of King George V in 1936 and of King George VI in 1952) all conformed to a similar pattern, albeit with individual differences and modifications (for example, the use of Westminster Hall for the lying-in-state dates from the time of the funeral of King Edward VII). Full ceremonial details of each funeral are recorded in the London Gazette (see "External links" below).The London Gazette, various issues and supplements.

State funeral of Queen Elizabeth II

The state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022 followed the same general pattern and conformed in many of the same details. A notable difference, however, was that the funeral service itself was separated from the committal service (with the former taking place in Westminster Abbey and the latter at St George's Chapel, Windsor). Another distinguishing feature was occasioned by the fact that Queen Elizabeth had died at Balmoral in Scotland, which allowed an additional procession, service and Lying-in-State to be held in Edinburgh, prior to the coffin being brought to London.

For the first time, in 2022, the monarch's funeral service in Westminster Abbey was televised, as was the committal service in St George's Chapel.

The events in London and Windsor took place as follows:

Conveyance of the body to Westminster Hall. From Buckingham Palace the Queen's coffin was transported to Westminster on a horse-drawn gun carriage of the King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery, escorted by military contingents, preceded by members of the late Queen's Household and followed on foot by the King and other members of the Royal Family. The coffin was draped with the Royal Standard, and on it was placed the Imperial State Crown and a wreath of flowers. The late monarch's current and former equerries served as pallbearers, walking alongside the coffin; while the 'bearer party' (which carried the coffin when required) was made up of eight guardsmen, accompanied by two officers. Lying in state in Westminster Hall. The coffin was placed on a catafalque in the middle of the hall. Following a brief service, the Orb and Sceptre were placed on the coffin, in addition to the Crown and flowers. Members of the public were then admitted and, over the course of four days and nights, filed past the coffin to pay their respects. During the lying in state each corner of the catafalque was guarded by units of the Sovereign's Bodyguard and the Household Division. Conveyance of the body from Westminster Hall to Westminster Abbey. For this procession the State Gun Carriage was hauled by 138 sailors of the Royal Navy. The coffin was escorted by the sovereign's bodyguards: the Gentlemen at Arms, the Yeomen of the Guard and the Royal Company of Archers. State Funeral Service in Westminster Abbey. The service was attended by the King and seventy other members of the wider royal family, along with Heads of State and other overseas representatives, those representing the Realms, the Commonwealth, Government, Parliament, the devolved Parliaments and Assemblies, the Church, charities and recipients of state honours. The service was conducted by the Dean of Westminster and a sermon was preached by the Archbishop of Canterbury, who also pronounced the Commendatory prayer. The lessons were read by the Commonwealth Secretary-General Baroness Scotland of Asthal and the then Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Liz Truss. Conveyance of the body from Westminster Abbey to Windsor Castle. A large procession accompanied the monarch's body for the first part of its final journey to Windsor (from the Abbey to Hyde Park Corner), including Armed Forces detachments from the UK and the Commonwealth realms. At Wellington Arch the coffin was transferred to the State Hearse and travelled by road to Windsor. For the last part of the journey, through Windsor Great Park, the procession was reassembled and accompanied the hearse to Windsor Castle, where it was joined again by members of the Royal Family. Committal service in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle. The service was conducted by the Dean of Windsor, with the Archbishop of Canterbury giving the final Blessing. Alongside the King and members of the Royal Family, the congregation was made up of past and present members of the Queen's Household along with the Governors General and Prime Ministers of the Commonwealth Realms. Prior to the lowering of the coffin into the royal vault, the Crown, Orb and Sceptre were removed from the coffin and placed on the altar; the new King placed the Queen's Company Camp Colour on the coffin, and following a centuries-old precedent, the Lord Chamberlain (the head of the late Queen's Household) broke his white staff of office to symbolize the end of his period of service to the late monarch. The Garter King of Arms then pronounced the style of the deceased monarch, using a form of words that has varied little over centuries of use. Burial in the King George VI Memorial Chapel: this took place privately later on the day of the funeral, with the immediate family only in attendance.

Other state funerals State funerals of distinguished citizens have followed a similar pattern to those of the monarch, except for the location of the funeral and burial. Churchill's body was taken by gun carriage from Westminster Hall (where it had lain in state) to St Paul's Cathedral for the funeral, which was said at that time to have been the largest in world history, bringing together representatives from 112 nations. Afterwards, his body was taken by river (on board the Port of London Authority launch Havengore) to Waterloo for the railway journey to Bladon for burial. His pallbearers were political and military leaders with whom he had worked closely during the war: Lord Attlee, Lord Avon, Harold Macmillan, Lord Ismay, Lord Slim, Lord Portal of Hungerford, Lord Alexander of Tunis and Lord Mountbatten of Burma.

History

Location From 1820, up to and including the funeral of King George VI in 1952, funerals of monarchs were held in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, with the burial also taking place there (or, in the case of Queen Victoria, in the nearby Frogmore Mausoleum). In earlier centuries, Westminster Abbey was the usual venue for both funeral and burial (albeit with several exceptions: for instance, Henry VIII was buried at Windsor, whilst James II and George I were both buried overseas). The funeral of Queen Elizabeth II was also held in Westminster Abbey; it was followed on the same day by a committal service in St George's Chapel, Windsor. The burial took place privately that same evening (attended by immediate family only) in the adjacent King George VI Memorial Chapel.BBC News television commentary 2022, Sep 9th and https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-60617519

The funeral of Admiral Nelson in 1806 set the precedent for St Paul's Cathedral being used as a grand venue for funerals of distinguished subjects. The State Funerals of Wellington and Churchill also took place there, as, more recently, did the ceremonial funeral of Baroness Thatcher. In the past half century, royal ceremonial funerals have tended to be held in Westminster Abbey (e.g. those of Lord Mountbatten, Diana, Princess of Wales and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother) with the burial in each case taking place privately elsewhere; however, the royal ceremonial funeral of Prince Philip (the consort of Elizabeth II) took place in St George's Chapel, Windsor, in unusual circumstances: because of the COVID restrictions in place at that time, which permitted a maximum of only 30 mourners to be in attendance, the ceremonial was greatly pared down.

Allowing the body of a monarch or nobleman to lie in state (for the public to pay their respects) is a long-established custom dating back many centuries, and is analogous to the once widespread practice of laying out a corpse for mourners at their home prior to a funeral. The use of Westminster Hall for this purpose, though, is comparatively modern, having begun with the state funeral of William Gladstone in 1898 (until 1882 the hall had been in use as law courts, and would not have been available for state events at short notice). The first monarch to lie in state there was Edward VII in 1910, and the first consort Queen Mary (1953). Monarchs in the 19th century all lay in state in Windsor Castle. In the 18th century Kensington Palace was often used, while in the 17th century the Palace of Whitehall was generally preferred. In earlier times, entry to the lying in state had been restricted to the gentry and nobility, but following the death of King George III in 1820 the public at large were admitted to the lying in state at Windsor Castle (where around 30,000 people filed past the late king's coffin in the two days before his funeral); this set the pattern for subsequent monarchs (with the exception of Queen Victoria, who had stipulated that her body should not lie in state).