Princess Anne thanks armed forces personnel involved in the Queen’s funeral

Princess Anne has thanked members of the armed forces who were involved in her mother, Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral during a visit to Portsmouth Naval Base.

The Princess Royal, who also holds the title of Commodore-in-Chief Portsmouth, met with Royal Navy personnel in Portsmouth who took part in the funeral procession earlier this week.

Following her appearance in Portsmouth, the Royal will travel to Aldershot, where in her role as Colonel-in-Chief of both the Royal Logistic Corps and Royal Corps of Signals, she will thank personnel from across the Corps.

Members of the armed forces played a key role in providing logistical support for the funeral and other associated ceremonial duties.

While Anne thanked members of the armed forces, her brother Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex has also returned to royal duties, visiting troops on deployment in Estonia and Germany.

Edward, in his role as Royal Colonel of 2nd Battalion The Rifles and Royal Honorary Colonel of the Royal Wessex Yeomanry, arrived in Tallin, Estonia, on Wednesday evening, ahead of his visit to Camp Tapa military base today.

In Estonia, the Earl met with military personnel to thank them for their vital support to UK military operations, their service to the Queen during her time as Commander-in-Chief, and their commitment toKing Charlesas the new Head of the Armed Forces.

On Friday, Prince Edward will then travel to Paderborn, Germany, where he will visit troops on deployment from the Royal Wessex Yeomanry at the Normandy Barracks and pay tribute to the ongoing service of the armed forces stationed abroad.

Today, William and Kate, the Prince and Princess of Wales arrived at Windsor Guildhall to greet volunteers and operational staff to thank them for facilitating the Queen’s committal service.

They both appeared in black for their first engagement since the Queen’s funeral as the royal mourning period continues.

Vice Lord Lieutenant Graham Barker and Windsor council’s lead royal funeral planner introduced William and Kate to staff and volunteers representing different sectors that supported the crowds that turned up to commemorate the Queen.

This included St John’s Ambulance, transport staff, council workers, stewards, infrastructure organisers and logistics teams.

Following the Queen’s funeral, the Royal’s period of mourning will continue for seven days, and during this time they are not expected to carry out official engagements, and flags at royal residences will remain at half-mast.

The King and Queen Consorthave flown to Scotland , where they will remain for the next week, so they are able to mourn their loss in private.

In a statement, Buckingham Palace said: “Following the death of Her Majesty the Queen, it is His Majesty the King’s wish that a period of royal mourning be observed from now until seven days after the Queen’s Funeral.

“Royal mourning will be observed by members of the royal family, Royal Household staff and representatives of the Royal Household on official duties, together with troops committed to ceremonial duties.”

While members of the Royal family can attend engagements if they wish, as many did in the period of mourning following Prince Philip’s death, those that do are likely to wear mourning bands to show that they are still in a period of grief.

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