Thank you, Ma’am: Armed Forces prepare to honour Her Majesty one final time
Head behind the scenes and find out how the Armed Forces have been preparing for the funeral for Her Majesty The Queen
Preparations continue to take place for the funeral for Her Majesty The Queen on Monday 19 September. Work has been taking place during every hour of the day to ensure that every minute detail is planned meticulously to the second to give Her Majesty the perfect final send off.
Take a look below at how the Armed Forces have been getting ready for Her Majesty’s funeral so far:
1. Behind the scenes preparations
Across the news, you will have seen rehearsals taking place for Her Majesty’s funeral, live interviews with Armed Forces personnel and more, which demonstrates the readiness of all those involved. However, did you know that a lot of work takes place behind the scenes to ensure perfection on the day.
Thousands of personnel are involved in the Parade for Her Majesty’s funeral, and every minute detail must be perfected, from medals to uniform to badges so that every single person is looking perfect and ready to honour their Commander-in-Chief one final time.
2. Early Morning Rehearsals
Tuesday 13 September: Procession rehearsal
In the early hours of Tuesday morning, Armed Forces personnel came together for a full dress rehearsal for the procession of Her Majesty The Queen’s coffin on Wednesday 14 September.
The early morning rehearsal took place in Wellington Barracks, moved to Buckingham Palace and then proceeded round the route to Westminster.
Following the rehearsal, we interviewed personnel who will be taking part in the Parade for Her Majesty’s funeral, including Lieutenant Colonel Burcham, a Principal Director of Music for the Royal Marines.
“It is an honour to be personally involved in the funeral, especially with my personal connection from my previous role. From a service point of view, we have always had a terrific relationship with Her Majesty.”
— Lieutenant Colonel Jason Burcham
Thursday 15 September: Funeral rehearsal
Once again in the early hours of the morning, Armed Forces personnel undertook a full dress rehearsal for Her Majesty’s funeral. Every detail to the second is carefully planned, from marching to band playing.
The dress rehearsal also included soldiers from nations in the Commonwealth, who Her Majesty had a close relationship with throughout her reign.
Saturday 17 September: Committal service rehearsal
Following on from the dress rehearsal that took place on Thursday 15 September, Armed Forces personnel took part in a rehearsal in Windsor on Saturday 17 September for the final stages of Her Majesty’s funeral.
This was once again conducted in the early hours of the morning, in the final days before Her Majesty’s funeral takes place.
Lance Sergeant Wordsworth from 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards was one of those participating in the early morning rehearsal, putting together his final personal preparations ahead of Her Majesty’s funeral.
“This is one of the biggest occasions, as sad as it may be, you’re not going to define anything more in your Army career than starting as a Queen’s guard and probably finishing as a King’s guard.”
— Lance Sergeant Wordsworth
3. Gun carriage training
Sailors at HMS Collingwood rehearsed pulling the gun carriage which will carry Her Majesty The Queen’s coffin at her funeral.
Every detail must be perfectly rehearsed to ensure accuracy and precision, with Armed Forces personnel coming together to honour Her Majesty one final time.
4. Preparing the horses
Members of the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery made final preparations at Regents Park Barracks for Her Majesty’s procession in London. Whilst there, they prepared horses and cleaned, painted and polished all of the equipment used during the procession.
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
21 April 1926 — 08 September 2022
Thank you, Ma’am.
