It’s an emotional day for the royal family. Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin was taken from Buckingham Palace on Wednesday and a procession including King Charles III, Prince William, Prince Harry, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward took to the streets of London to bring it to Westminster Hall.
Once inside Westminster, William and Harry were joined by their wives, Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle, for the Service for the Reception of Her Majesty’s Coffin.
The queen’s coffin will lie in state at Westminster Abbey until the date of her planned funeral on Sept. 19. Members of the public have already started lining up to pay their final respects.
The service was a somber occasion with both the new Princess of Wales and the Duchess of Sussex clad in all-black dresses with matching fascinator hats. Meghan was also seen wearing a pair of pearl and diamond drop earrings, gifted to her by the late queen in 2018 for their first solo outing together. William, the new Prince of Wales, wore his military uniform, while Harry wore his black mourning suit with his military medals attached. Meghan and Kate were each seen curtsying in front of the coffin. And Meghan and Harry held hands as they exited Westminster.
In a touching moment, Harry was seen wiping away tears as he honored his late grandmother.
Harry and Meghan have been estranged from the royal family since their 2020 decision to step down as senior royals and relocate their family to California.
But in the wake of the queen’s death, Harry and Meghan have been seen reuniting with the royals on multiple occasions. Harry made the trip to Balmoral Castle in Scotland alone after hearing of his grandmother’s declining health. Unfortunately, he was not able to make it in time to see her before she died.
Harry and Meghan were invited by William to join him and Kate to greet mourners outside of Windsor Castle shortly after.
ET previously learned that William reached out to Harry about an hour before the moment and “invited the duke and duchess to join him and the Princess of Wales.” A source tells ET that “the Prince of Wales thought it was an important show of unity at an incredibly difficult time for the family.”
Harry and Meghan were also seen joining the family at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday evening to receive the queen’s coffin.
After it was announced that Harry would not be allowed to wear his military uniform to any of the events surrounding the queen’s death, a spokesperson for the Duke of Sussex released a statement to royal reporters about Harry’s reaction to the news.
“Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex, will wear a mourning suit throughout events honoring his grandmother,” the statement read. “His decade of military service is not determined by the uniform he wears, and we respectfully ask that focus remain on the life and legacy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.”
For more on Queen Elizabeth’s death, check out ET’s ongoing coverage.
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