A horse-drawn gun carriage carrying the body of Queen Elizabeth II to the Houses of Parliament was followed by weeping family members as she left Buckingham Palace for the final time on Wednesday. Prior to the late monarch's funeral on Monday, the casket will be on display for four days. Thousands of people are anticipated to pass by. The oak and lead-lined coffin was carried by eight pall bearers into Westminster Hall, where it was placed on a raised platform called a catafalque. The solemn procession was intended to emphasize the queen's seven decades as head of state as the national mourning process moved to the grand boulevards and historic landmarks of the U.K. capital. It was topped with the Royal Standard and the crown of state, and artillery fired salutes at one-minute intervals. The royal family, including King Charles III and his sons Princes William and Harry, followed the gun carriage. Thousands of spectators who had spent hours lining up along The Mall in front of the palace and other spots held up phones and cameras as the mournful procession passed, and others wiped away their tears.

Key Points

• A horse-drawn gun carriage carrying the body of Queen Elizabeth II to the Houses of Parliament was followed by weeping family members as she left Buckingham Palace for the final time on Wednesday.

• The solemn procession was intended to emphasize the queen's seven decades as head of state as the national mourning process moved to the grand boulevards and historic landmarks of the U.K. capital. It was topped with the Royal Standard and the crown of state, and artillery fired salutes at one-minute intervals. 

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