The Queen is dead. God save the King.

Your Tatler rose early this morning to catch some of the services for the late Queen Elizabeth II. They turned out to be so compelling and moving he watched all six hours of them. The British have a special talent for putting on large scale precision public ceremonies that also manage to display warmth and humanity, unlike, say, Leni Riefenstahl’s ghastly cold-blooded productions.

That was especially so with today’s splendid events commemorating the Queen’s death and this writer believes it is because they were unabashedly and unapologetically Christian, surly reflecting the late Queen’s deep and abiding faith, as well her having a major say in the planning of events at her death. To that end, all prayers and scripture readings were Christian, nothing whatsoever from the other Abrahamic faiths. This was a Christian nation mourning the death of its Defender of the Faith.

That faith of course is Protestant Christianity, as made clear in the state funeral at the Abbey and the later, smaller committal service at Windsor Castle. In a gratifyingly ecumenical action, however,  important Catholic clergy and laity were invited to participate, no doubt because of England’s large Catholic population, but also perhaps, recognition that all England’s monarchs were all Catholic until the passage by Parliament of the Act of Supremacy in 1534, and Protestant thereafter (save some exceptions with unfortunate outcomes). Also once Catholic were the two venues, the Abbey and St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle.

Whether is was required of participating Catholic clergy and laity or, as your Tatler likes to think, a gracious gesture by them, Catholics who read scripture at the two ceremonies did so from the King James Bible, at least as best this observer could tell. Good for them. It lent unity to the occasion and gave rise, however infinitesimal, to the hope the Church of England will once again be one with the Holy Catholic Church. There is an excellent account of the ecumenism displayed at the Queen’s funeral and commitment found in the Tablet.

Your Tatler was particularly thankful for the BBC’s coverage of today’s events. Unlike other broadcast services, especially ours, which are terrified of silence, the Beeb kept chatter, blabber and “back-chat” to a minimum, often allowing long stretches of uninterrupted quiet to allow viewers to take in the splendor. This was especially appreciated during the extensive musical offerings made by the numerous forces involved. Also praiseworthy was virtually all the music was by British composers, though at least one of the brass bands snuck in the Marche Funébre from Chopin’s Piano Sonata No. 2, to no ill effect at all.

A memorable day. Requiescat in pace Elizabeth Regina. God save the King.