How the Queen’s children wrestled with emotions bubbling beneath the surface: The King showed ‘resolve and firmness’ while Princess Anne raised her eyebrows to ‘avoid tears’, body language expert claims
- King wanted to demonstrate ‘resolve’ during vigil, body language expert claims
- Judi James said the royal siblings were all showcasing different emotions
- Prince Andrew looked ‘pained’ while Anne might have been fighting back tears
The Queen’s children were wrestling with different emotions as they stood guard over their mother’s coffin during the vigil in Edinburgh tonight, a body language expert has claimed.
After a short procession, King Charles III, Anne, the Princess Royal, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward each stood on one of the four corners of the oak coffin with their heads bowed.
But while all four siblings stood in a broadly similar way, their facial expressions hinted at the internal struggles they were facing during the deeply poignant moment at St Giles’ Cathedral.
Prince Andrew looked ‘pained’ while Princess Anne might have been trying to fight back tears.
The Queen’s children were each trying to communicate different emotions as they stood guard over their mother’s coffin during the vigil in Edinburgh tonight, a body language expert has claimed. Prince Charles was the picture of ‘firmness and resolve’ with his straight brow (above)
Meanwhile ‘Anne’s brows were raised high above her downcast eye gaze,’ Judi said, as seen above. ‘This is often performed in an attempt to avoid tears that can occur more easily when the eyes are squeezed shut but the look also seemed to imply an ongoing disbelief’
Prince Andrew’s brows were lowered to the ground, giving him a ‘pained expression’, according to Judi. The Duke of York, pictured, joined his siblings at the vigil tonight
‘Anne, Charles and Andrew all had very different facial expressions of reflection and grief,’ Judi James said in an interview with FEMAIL.
‘Charles’s features had a more horizonal set to them, suggesting a desire for firmness and resolve. Andrew’s brows were in a deep frown that gave his lowered eyes a rather pained expression.
‘Anne’s brows were raised high above her downcast eye gaze.
‘This is often performed in an attempt to avoid tears that can occur more easily when the eyes are squeezed shut but the look also seemed to imply an ongoing disbelief about the loss of her mother.’
Judi explained that the King appeared in good spirits as he stepped out of the car with his wife Camilla, the Queen Consort, ‘but once inside the cathedral his mood seemed to change’.
Judi explained that the King appeared in good spirits as he stepped out of the car with his wife Camilla, the Queen Consort, ‘but once inside the cathedral his mood seemed to change’
The King appeared somewhat ‘fretful’, pictured, and turned twice to look back at his brothers, Edward and Andrew, who followed in from behind
‘Charles’s reflective pose and the way he pulled up to full height suggested he was steeling himself,’ Judi said. Pictured, Charles taking his place next to his mother’s coffin
The King appeared somewhat ‘fretful’ and turned twice to look back at his brothers, Edward and Andrew, who followed in from behind.
She continued: ‘The four siblings then adopted the formation they would be doing their vigil in and it might have been Charles’s expectation that they would walk in a line instead.
‘When they reached the coffin Anne’s eye expression looked hollow as she gazed close-up before turning her back on it.
‘Charles’s reflective pose and the way he pulled up to full height suggested he was steeling himself before all four adopted the vigil pose with heads down and hands clasped in front.’
The Duke of York kept his eyes closed for a period of time during the vigil, while the Princess Royal and Earl of Wessex had their eyes fixed towards the floor
Members of the public – who have been filing past the coffin in their thousands throughout the afternoon – continued to file past as the royals stood completely still
The King and his family stood alongside four suited members of the Royal Company of Archers, who were standing guard dressed in long-feathered hats and armed with arrows and quivers.
Members of the public – who have been filing past the coffin in their thousands throughout the afternoon – were briefly held back to allow the royals to take their place. However, they continued to file past once the vigil began, offering them an extraordinary perspective on the historic moment.
A number of members of the public bowed as they passed the King, with others walking solemnly by with heads down. Charles wore the Prince Charles Edward Stuart tartan and white heather in his lappelle from Balmoral, while Anne and Edward appeared in military uniform.
King Charles III, Anne, the Princess Royal, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward each stood on one of the four corners of the coffin in a ceremony known as the Vigil of the Princes
The King kept his hands joined and also looked towards the floor as members of the public filed past
However, Andrew – despite having served in the Falklands War – wore only a morning suit, having been banned from wearing uniform on public occasions following his exile from public life amid the fallout from his role in the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. The Duke of York will only be permitted to appear in military dress during a second Vigil of the Princes in Westminster Hall.
The tradition has been honoured since the death of King George V in 1936, with Princess Anne today becoming the first female royal to take part.
The Queen Consort and Countess of Wessex sat on seats opposite the coffin while the vigil, which began at at 7.46pm and finished it at 7.56pm, took place in the ancient cathedral. The Archers have been completing 20-minute periods of standing guard at the coffin, which will remain at St Giles’ for 24 hours before it is taken to London to lie in state.
Members of the crowd cheered as Charles arrived at the cathedral, and as he departed. As he drove past them, they took pictures and video and said: ‘Here he is. Here he is. It’s the King.’
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