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Prince Philip’s funeral car with special coffin

Prince Philip’s funeral will not go on without some personal touches he has put on it with an eco-friendly car and coffin.

Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth: Their secret love story

Prince Philip’s funeral will not go on without some personal touches he has put on it.

Buckingham Palace has said it “still very much reflect the personal wishes of the Duke”.

Philip’s coffin will be carried on a Land Rover he helped design.

The modified Land Rover Defender 130 Gun Bus he helped design is expected to be a hybrid.

Philip drove a Land Rover for most of his life but was forced to give up his licence after crashing into a car in Norfolk while driving two years ago.

The Sun reports palace officials have looked at using the $1600 casket for the Duke who was among the first to highlight climate change in the 1950s.

The chosen undertakers — Leverton and Sons — were founding members of the Association of Green Funeral Directors, and used Britain’s first all-electric hearse.

Leeds-based AW Hainsworth, which makes woollen coffins, has a longstanding relationship with the Royal Family and made the military uniforms worn by Prince William and Harry at their weddings.

Director Thomas Hainsworth told The Sun: “I met the Duke of Edinburgh on several occasions.

Prince Philip’s Land Rover Defender 130 Gun Bus being driven around Sandringham in Norfolk. Picture: Media Mode
Prince Philip’s Land Rover Defender 130 Gun Bus being driven around Sandringham in Norfolk. Picture: Media Mode

“Once was at the Queen’s Award for Innovation where I introduced myself and explained I was in ­textiles. He replied by saying, ‘Oh yes, a dying industry isn’t it?’”

Made from three fleeces, each coffin features a cotton lining and is 100 per cent biodegradable.

The details come as the Royal Family Instagram account also paid tribute to Prince Philip on Monday with a post about him being a “passionate advocate for conservation, wildlife and the environment”.

Prince Philip driving Queen Elizabeth in his Land Rover in 2017.
Prince Philip driving Queen Elizabeth in his Land Rover in 2017.

It noted Prince Philip was the first President of World Wildlife Fund, International President of the WWF and then President Emeritus of the WWF until his death.

The Prince was also an Honorary Fellow of the Zoological Society of London.

“The Duke was involved in many conservation efforts throughout his lifetime, from establishing an alliance between religious leaders and conservationists, to travelling across the Southern Pacific Ocean and Antarctica to identify native seabirds,” it stated.

“In 1988, as President of @WWF, The Duke of Edinburgh supported efforts by a conservation group in Mexico to protect the Monarch Butterfly as deforestation and commercial logging posed a serious threat to the species’ survival. His Royal Highness is pictured here watching the Monarch butterfly’s migration.

“Over the course of his life, The Duke of Edinburgh was associated with 992 charities and organisations, from scientific and tech research to the welfare of young people and the encouragement of sport.”

Prince Philip’s funeral will also see the Royal Navy, air force and the army take part in an eight-minute procession.

Only 30 people will be allowed inside but this excludes the clergy officiating and pallbearers.

Buckingham Palace has said that those in attendance will cover all of Philip’s children and grandchildren.

This would include the Queen, Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and the Duke of Sussex. Some spouses are likely to be present, such as Mike Tindall, husband of the Queen’s granddaughter Zara, while others will not, such as Autumn Phillips, who is separated from her husband Peter, Zara’s brother.

Others in attendance may include the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, the Duke and Duchess of Kent, Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, Princess Alexandra, the Earl of Snowdon and his sister Lady Sarah Chatto.

The duke’s private secretary Brigadier Archie Miller-Bakewell will also be in the chapel.

Philip will be interred in the Royal Vault below St George’s Chapel. His coffin will be placed on a marble slab in the Quire then lowered into the vault.

When the Queen dies, Philip will be transferred to the King George VI memorial chapel, Windsor, where the couple will be laid to rest together.

Read related topics:Prince PhillipThe Royals

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Original URL: https://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/world/prince-phillips-funeral-car-with-special-coffin/news-story/5fc00e42aede17b8cb34a175e0fa39f7