Although it was expected that
only the Queen’s children would be present, Zara and Mike brought along their
young daughters Mia and Lena, and Peter Phillips also
brought along his two young daughters, Savannah and Isla. The young girls were
dressed in black, including their hairbands.
Zara’s son Lucas remained at
home, and it is likely because of his young age, while the elder daughters
might understand the proceedings a bit more.
The vigil saw the Queen’s four
children, King Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince
Edward stand guard by the coffin for 15 minutes.
The Queen has been lying in
state since Wednesday and thousands of members of the public have headed to
London in order to pass the coffin, waiting in a queue for hours.
The four royals had previously
stood guard over their mother’s coffin when she laid in St Giles’ Cathedral on
Monday.
While the Queen’s four
children began their vigil, which lasted for ten minutes between 7.46 to
7.56pm, the Queen Consort and the Countess of Wessex sat on seats opposite the
coffin while the vigil took place as a show of support.
A further vigil is expected to
take place on Saturday, with all of the Queen’s grandchildren taking part.
Prince William will stand at
the head of the coffin and will be joined by his brother Prince Harry and cousins,
Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie, Zara Tindall, Lady Louise Windsor and
James, Viscount Severn.
