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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
National
Martin Belam

Four-legged farewells: Queen’s corgis and pony attend funeral procession

Queen Elizabeth II’s staff lined the street outside Buckingham Palace to say farewell to the monarch after her funeral – and it wasn’t just the humans of the royal household who were seen during Monday’s ceremonies. The Queen’s corgis and one of her ponies were led out to witness the procession at Windsor.

The Queen’s dogs, Muick and Sandy, which are pembroke welsh corgis, waited in the quadrangle at Windsor Castle as the funeral cortege arrived while being looked after by two members of staff.

The royal corgis await the cortege.
The royal corgis await the cortege. Photograph: Peter Nicholls/Reuters

At the time of her death the Queen also had two other dogs – a dorgi called Candy, and Lissy the cocker spaniel. It has been confirmed that Prince Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson will look after the corgis. Andrew was later seen in the company of the dogs.

The Queen was first given a corgi when she was seven, and generations of the royal corgis are descended from Susan, a corgi she was given when she was 18.

Also on display was the Queen’s Fell pony, Carltonlima Emma, who was led to the side of the road at a gap between floral tributes while the coffin was driven past.

Emma, the Queen’s Fell pony, stands as the coffin arrives at Windsor Castle.
Emma, the Queen’s Fell pony, stands as the coffin arrives at Windsor Castle. Photograph: Aaron Chown/PA

Usually known just as Emma, the horse was named among the Queen’s favourites for Horse & Hound magazine in 2020 by Terry Pendry, one of the grooms at Windsor. The Queen was a patron of the Fell Pony Society, and continued to ride Emma when she was well into her 90s.

The pony carried one of the monarch’s headscarves.
The pony carried one of the monarch’s headscarves. Photograph: Aaron Chown/AP

The animals didn’t play quite as prominent a role as they have in some royal funerals of the past. Heads of state were reportedly somewhat surprised at the 1910 funeral of King Edward VII to find themselves behind the monarch’s dog Caesar, a wire fox terrier, in the formal procession.

Caesar is included in a sculpture of Edward VII and his queen atop their tomb in St George’s Chapel, where Queen Elizabeth II’s committal took place on Monday.

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