War veterans, teenagers and young mothers were among the thousands of mourners who gathered outside Windsor Castle and London’s royal palaces to express their subdued yet heartfelt grief over the loss of the Queen Mother, and their admiration for the woman known as “the People’s Granny”.
“She had such dignity,” said 26-year-old Tracey Abbott from Portsmouth. “We will never see her like again.”
“When she refused to move out of London during the Blitz, she became one of our own,” said 75-year-old East Londoner Joseph Lemming, who was one of a 5,000-strong crowd outside Buckingham Palace. “It was a scary time for us all, but she helped us live through it.”
Flowers, candles, teddy bears and even a bottle of gin – the Queen Mum’s favourite tipple – were among the gifts left at the palaces, while mourners of all ages exchanged warm remembrances of the centenarian, describing her as “extraordinary”, “the People’s Granny”, and “an amazing inspiration”.
“We have lost a national treasure,” said one policeman managing crowds outside St James’s Palace.
Hundreds queued in the Mall on Sunday, waiting patiently to sign condolence books at St James’s Palace. Some had camped out overnight to be the first to leave messages when the Palace opened the books at 9am. By noon Sunday, over one thousand people – from locations ranging from the US to Zimbabwe – had left their handwritten condolences. The figure had more than doubled just hours later.
“It was something I needed to do,” said one mourner. “I was very upset. She is like my own grandmother – a dignified, brave woman.”
While some signed condolence books at Sandringham and the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh, many kept an all-night vigil outside the gates of Windsor Castle in memory of the Queen’s beloved mother. Policemen gathered flowers, teddy bears and candles from onlookers to lay them on a lawn outside St George’s Chapel. One note read: “Goodnight Ma’am. God bless. Thank you.”
Thousands flocked to the Queen Mum’s London home, Clarence House, paying their respects through notes attached to colourful floral bouquets. “Sadly missed, mum of all mums,” read one card.
Up to 400,000 people are expected to pass through Westminster Hall, where the Queen Mother will lie in state, beginning on Friday, April 5. Her coffin will remain there until the following Monday, when it will be transferred to Westminster Abbey for the April 9 funeral.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
