Prince Harry Spotted Crying at Queen Elizabeth's Service Alongside Meghan Markle, Kate Middleton
Prince Harry was spotted crying at the funeral service for his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, alongside his wife Meghan Markle and sister-in-law Kate Middleton. On Wednesday, Queen Elizabeth II's casket was taken from Buckingham Palace and transported to Westminster Hall in a procession that included a number of the Royal Family members, such as Harry and his brother Prince William. Once inside Westminster, William and Harry were joined by their spouses, Middleton and Markle, for the Service for the Reception of Her Majesty's Coffin.
It was here, inside Westminster, that cameras captured Harry's tears, which he wiped away while paying tribute to his late grandmother, as published by ET Online. Other Royals present for the memorial include Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward. The queen's casket will now lie in state at Westminster Abbey until the date of her official funeral. That is to be held on Monday, Sept. 19. ET notes that members of the public have already begun to get in line to pay their final respects to the late monarch.
During the service, members of the Royal Family stood in formation facing the coffin on its purple-covered catafalque.
— The Mirror (@DailyMirror) September 15, 2022
As it continued an emotional Prince Harry appeared to lose his composure as he was seen wiping tears from his eyes 😔 pic.twitter.com/QbuZ0snNIm
Interestingly, during the coffin procession for Queen Elizabeth II, many noticed that Harry didn't salute his grandmother's casket. According to Us Weekly, Harry and his uncle Prince Andrew wore mourning suits for the procession, while many of their family members — including Harry's father King Charles III, and his brother Prince William — were adorned in their military service wardrobe. This is because neither Harry nor Andrew are working members of the Royal Family any longer, and therefore they were expected to simply now their heads in reverence rather than salute the coffin, even though both men did serve in the British military.
Harry served for a decade in the armed forced, but stepped down from his senior Royal duties in 2020, along with his wife, Meghan Markle. The couple share two children: 3-year-old son Archie and 15-month-old daughter Lili. They moved to California where they live and work with an organization they founded, Archewell Inc., which is "an American public organization that focuses on non-profit activities and creative media ventures." Walking away from his Royal life meant that Harry gave up three honorary military titles.
Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-reigning royal monarch of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, died on Thursday, Sept. 8, at 96 years old. Her death comes just under 18 months after the death of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, her husband of more than 73 years. The Queen died at Balmoral, her beloved palace in the Scottish Highlands, which was purchased by her great-great-grandfather Prince Albert for Queen Victoria in 1852. She was surrounded by her children and grandchildren. Charles, her eldest son — and Harry's father — succeeds her as leader of the British monarchy.