Five years on, the image of Queen Elizabeth II alone at Prince Philip’s funeral is still a ‘heartbreaking’ testament to a world in turmoil

On 17 April 2021, the world watched as Queen Elizabeth II sat alone during the funeral of her husband, Prince Philip

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Queen Elizabeth II was one of the most photographed human beings on the planet. Across her 70-year reign, millions of pictures of the late monarch were circulated, but surely none were as heartbreaking as the image of her sitting alone at the funeral of her beloved husband, Prince Philip.

On 17 April 2021, the world was still in the grips of the pandemic. Covid restrictions meant that public distancing was mandated, so Queen Elizabeth, then 94, was forced to mourn the death of her partner of 73 years by herself on a pew in St George’s Chapel, Windsor.

Clad in mourning black, the lower half of her face covered by a mask, Her Majesty arrived at the service in a black Bentley, accompanied by one of her ladies-in-waiting, Lady Susan Hussey. The car stopped by the side of Prince Philip’s hearse – a customised Land Rover – allowing the Queen a chance to look at her husband’s coffin. While the late Prince had orchestrated much of the service (he requested that there be no sermon and no eulogy), the Queen had personally chosen the flowers laid atop his coffin: lilies, roses, jasmine, freesia, sweetpeas, and waxflower.