The Queen Consort wore the pin of The Rifles, representing her valued role as Regimental Commander-in-Chief inherited from the Duke of Edinburgh and the insignia of the top secret Special Reconnaissance Regiment. The princess wore diamond and pearl earrings once worn by her mother-in-law. Both women wore a trio of poppies, exchanging what appeared to be warm words before falling silent as their husbands emerged from underneath. The King, wearing the greatcoat of No. 1 Marshal, was followed by his eldest son – the tallest in his family in RAF uniform – and his siblings the Earl of Wessex and the Princess Royal, with horsemen carrying wreaths behind their. At 11am, starting with the tolling of Big Ben, the capital – and those watching and listening from home – fell silent. Then, in the measured, respectful laying of wreaths, the moment of reality – a first Remembrance Sunday in which Queen Elizabeth II was gone and King Charles III led the nation. In the event, it wasn’t annoying. He had, after all, prepared her family and the nation for life without her for years.
