Wiki
King Edward VII (ruled 1901-10) died on 6 May 1910. After a private lying in state in Buckingham Palace’s Throne Room, the coffin was taken to Westminster Hall for a public lying in state; thousands of citizens queued in the rain to pay their respects. Kaiser Wilhelm II wanted the hall closed while he laid a wreath; but police feared this may cause disorder, so the Kaiser was taken in via another entrance. In total half a million people visited the hall to pay respects.
The funeral was held two weeks after the king's death. Crowds of 3-5 million gathered to watch the procession, the route of which was lined by 35,000 soldiers. It went from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall, where a small ceremony was conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury before a small group of official mourners: widow Queen Alexandra, son King George V, daughter Princess Victoria, brother Duke of Connaught and nephew the German Emperor. The remainder of the huge funeral party waited outside the Hall. Big Ben was rung 68 times, Edward's age.
The 9 monarchs and the Duke of Cornwall in funeral procession,
High St Windsor. Bridgeman
High St Windsor. Bridgeman
The march saw a horseback procession plus 11 carriages, proceeding from Westminster Hall via Whitehall and the Mall, Hyde Park Corner to Marble Arch. From there to Paddington Station. Then the Royal Funeral Train, built for Queen Victoria, took mourners to Windsor Castle where a full funeral ceremony was held in St George's Chapel. This public funeral was notable for the important European royalty in attendance.
Edward’s funeral passed in the streets of London on 20th May 1910. See the moving casket, heads of state walking behind the casket, royal carriage and marching military units.
The reigning European monarchs were present during King Edward VII’s burial in 1910. This was a great opportunity and collected the monarchs for this historical image, possibly the only photo of all 9 kings in existence. The funeral was the largest gathering of European royalty ever to take place, with representatives of 70 states and the last before many royal families were deposed in and after WW1.
The reigning European monarchs were present during King Edward VII’s burial in 1910. This was a great opportunity and collected the monarchs for this historical image, possibly the only photo of all 9 kings in existence. The funeral was the largest gathering of European royalty ever to take place, with representatives of 70 states and the last before many royal families were deposed in and after WW1.
Back L->R: King Haakon VII of Norway, Tsar Ferdinand of Bulgaria, King Manuel II of Portugal, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, King George I of Greece, King Albert I of Belgium.
Front L->R: Kings Alfonso XIII of Spain, George V of Britain, Frederick VIII of Denmark.
King George V was related by blood or marriage to most of Europe’s sovereigns; he was a grandson of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, and first cousin of Russian Tsar Nicholas II and German Emperor Wilhelm II. Here he was seen with two uncles (Kings of Denmark), brother-in-law and first cousin (King of Norway), first cousin by marriage (King of Spain) and 3 distant cousins, all descended from branches of the Saxe-Coburg family (Kings of Bulgaria, Portugal and the Belgians). And note that Frederik VIII of Denmark was father of Haakon VII of Norway.
The funeral service largely followed the format used for Queen Victoria. The liturgy was based on the Order for The Burial of the Dead, Book of Common Prayer. And Queen Alexandra accepted His Body Is Buried In Peace, from George Frideric Handel's Funeral Anthem. Edward was temporarily buried in Windsor’s Royal Vault under Albert Chapel.
Edward’s funeral was the last time all of the great European monarchs met before WW1. In fact WW1 ended most of the monarchical lines of Europe for good. Looking at this picture really makes one realise how much WW1 was the result of national egos embodied by monarchs, rather than a sense of duty to their states. Within 5 years, Britain & Belgium went war with Germany & Bulgaria, and 4 of the 9 monarchies in the photo did not survive (Bulgaria, Portugal, Germany and Greece). 4 kings were later deposed and 1 was assassinated.
King, Kaiser, Tsar: Three Royal Cousins Who Led the World to War is a biography of the formative lives of cousins George V, Wilhelm II and Nicholas II, who led their countries into WWI. The three leaders grew up knowing each other since early childhood in a vast extended family, overseen by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.
Queen Alexandra ordered a monument designed and executed by Bertram Mackennal in 1919. It featured tomb effigies of the king and queen in white marble mounted on a marble sarcophagus, where both bodies were buried after the queen's death in 1925.