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After a 70-year reign, Queen Elizabeth II was laid to rest at Windsor Castle

JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:

The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, who inherited the British throne in 1952, was lowered into its final resting place today. Before that, a state funeral, the culmination of 10 days of mourning since the queen's death on September 8.

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IAIN GREENSHIELDS: Let us give thanks to God for Queen Elizabeth's long life and reign, recalling with gratitude her gifts of wisdom, diligence and service.

MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:

Reverend Iain Greenshields, moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, one of the speakers this morning at a ceremony at Westminster Abbey. Then thousands upon thousands of people lined the streets for a long procession through and out of London. After that, a smaller service filled with royal rituals at St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle.

SUMMERS: Today everyday Britons reacted to the queen's funeral.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: It's very calm. It's very moving. And the crown - the Queen's crown - is sitting on the coffin. It's absolutely beautiful, and it just touches your heart.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: We know it's real, but when you see a coffin in there, it comes home.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #3: It'll be a long time before we experience anything like this again in our lives, so...

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #4: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #3: It's a moment in our country's history, and it's important to experience it.

SUMMERS: In the final public ceremony, King Charles, the royal family, clergy members and others in attendance concluded in song - "God Save The Queen."

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UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: (Singing) God save our gracious queen. Long live our noble queen. God save the queen. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

Megan Lim
[Copyright 2024 NPR]