In the end it all went like the Prince Philip he had asked, although he surely would not have wanted his death to come at such a difficult time for the family. The funeral of the Duke of Edinburgh could have been an opportunity to bring the Principe William e Harry, but this was not the case, at least judging from the images that saw them walking behind the Land Rover that carried the coffin.
The children of Lady Diana did not even look at them, they participated in the procession as expected, in the same row, separated from cousin Peter Philips, son of Princess Anna, without ever giving the idea of wanting to show a sign of letting up, a step back.
Images in stark contrast to those that saw them united in pain for the loss of their mother, in that 1997 procession that is still vivid in everyone’s mind.
Not a good sign, initially, for those hoping for a reconciliation between the two brothers, for which we will have to wait a little longer. Certainly, however, these days William e Harry they will have had the opportunity to speak and who knows that the next few days, when the spotlight on the funeral will be off, the two will not be able to confront each other again before the return of the Duke of Sussex to California from Meghan Markle.
A distance, that between Harry and the Royal Family, which appeared evident even once the funeral began, inside the ceppella: the Prinicipe was at the bottom of a row of seats, far from the cousins due to the anti-Covid provisions. But it appeared more alone than ever.
Philip, however, may have managed, despite his absence, to act as peacemaker. At the exit of the function, in fact, Harry first approached Kate, and then walked next to William. A certain coldness was evident, the days when the two brothers jostled or joked are long gone. Or again, as on the day of the wedding of the Duke of Cambridge to Kate, they force each other. Now they are two men with their differences of opinion trying to save their relationship. And the one seen at the end of the funeral could be the first step.
The ceremony, as mentioned, took place exactly as planned, that is, as Prince Philip had described in every detail, from the Land Rover that he himself had designed to the songs, from the type of rite (deliberately not of state) to the memorabilia.
What aroused greater dismay in the subjects, however, was the image of Queen Elizabeth who enters the chapel of St. George, accompanied by the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby: His Majesty has given the idea of being vulnerable, she looked more hunched over and showed, perhaps for the first time, all her age. Her gaze, always imperturbable, this time seemed dull, turned downwards: the thought of that husband who was beside for over 70 years, always a step back, without ever letting her lack her support.
Kate Middleton and Camilla did not take part in the procession, but waited for the monarch outside the porch of the chapel. The Duchess of Cambridge, very elegant in her black dress and string of pearls, appeared particularly distressed, but as always she managed to maintain the required demeanor.
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