What's Prince Philip's funeral going to be like, and who will attend at Windsor Castle?

On Saturday April 17, the late Prince Philip is buried in Windsor. The procession and ceremony will be televised. They will be very different from what we would normally see; partly due to the Prince's own wishes, partly because of the coronavirus pandemic. What's the schedule for the Duke of Edinburgh's funeral, and how can the public watch it?

The husband of Queen Elizabeth was 99 years old when he passed away on Friday April 9 at his home in Windsor Castle. The Duke had suffered from health problems for some time and underwent heart surgery in March this year.

The Duke of Edinburgh wanted a simple funeral, without any fuss as he has been known to favour in public events. This means that a state funeral was never planned for the Prince, nor would he lay in state before his burial.

Prince Philip, who is currently at rest within one of Windsor Castle's private chapels, discussed his wishes for the funeral in conversations with the Queen and Buckingham Palace staff over the course of years.

The ceremony will therefore go exactly as he would have wanted, except for some drastic changes due to the pandemic of which the royal family was aware before the Prince passed away.

The Duke's relatives, including his children Charles, Anne, Andrew, and Edward, have responded with great sadness to his passing. His grandson William said that Philip was "an extraordinary man and part of an extraordinary generation," and that he would miss his "Grandpa." William's brother Harry has flown in from the US to attend his grandfather's wedding.

The funeral will be a small affair. Due to COVID-19 regulations, no more than 30 persons can attend an event. Initially, the Prince and the Queen had planned a funeral with 800 attendants, but that is not an option anymore.

Also due to COVID-19 regulations, there will not be a public procession. The ceremony is limited to the private grounds of Windsor Castle.

The public is advised not to travel to Windsor to pay their last respects to the Prince, because there will be no occasion to do so.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has already indicated that he won't be at the burial of Prince Philip in order to save a space for another attendant. This is unusual, because the Prime Minister is normally present at a royal funeral to pay his last respects.

Meghan Markle, Prince Harry's wife, will also be absent from Prince Philip's funeral. She remains in their California home where she is an advanced stage of her pregnancy. Prince Harry has already touched down in the UK but is currently in quarantine to limit any risk of COVID-19 contamination.

Why isn't Meghan Markle attending Prince Philip's funeral?

Sarah Ferguson, Prince Andrew's ex-wife and the mother of Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice, has not been invited to attend the funeral. While she's reportedly been very close to the Queen, accompanying her on her daily walks, Ferguson allegedly had a strained relationship with Prince Philip after she divorced his son. Prince Andrew himself, obviously, will be present at the ceremony, as well as his daughters and their spouses (Jack Brooksbank and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi).

Among the thirty guests that did get an invitation and confirmed that they will attend, are the Duke of Edinburgh's children and their partners (not including Sarah Ferguson), and his grandchildren and their partners (except for Meghan Markle). The grandchildren include Prince Edward's children (Lady Louise Windsor and Viscount Severn) and Princess Anne's children (Peter and Zara Phillips, the latter with partner Mike Tindall)

While the Queen and her children and grandchildren with their partners fill twenty seats at the funeral, the remaining ten attendants include the Queen's nephew and niece from the side of the late Princess Margaret; the Duke of Kent; Princess Alexandra; and the Duke of Gloucester with his partner (photo).

There are three members on the list who flew in from Germany and belong to Prince Philip's wider family from that country. They are Bernhard, Hereditary Prince of Baden (photo); Prince Donatus, Landgrave of Hesse; and Prince Philipp of Hohenlohe-Langenburg.

The plans for the funeral have a codename: Operation Forth Bridge, named after the iconic bridge over the Forth river in Scotland. It's a military operation, minutely planned, and with a poetic name - bringing the the Prince from one side to another.

The ceremony won't start until 2:40 pm GMT, but BBC One and Sky News will start broadcasting approximately two hours ahead of the funeral. ITV starts at 1:15 pm. Buckingham Palace has given the TV stations permission to provide "dignified media coverage."

Prince Philip is currently at rest in the Private Chapel, in the upper right corner of this image of Windsor Castle. The procession will start there at 2:40 GMT, leading to St George's chapel (in the bottom left corner) in a procession of about fifteen minutes.

Per his own wish, Prince Philip's coffin will be brought from Private Chapel to St George's Chapel in a Land Rover hearse. It's a "specially modified Land Rover, which Philip helped to design," Sky News reports. Prince Charles and other family members and staff will follow the car on foot.

The Queen will travel to the Chapel separately, the BBC reports. She won't be among the family members walking behind Prince Philip's coffin. Moreover, the Queen will sit separately from the rest of the family in St. George's Chapel to avoid any possibility of catching the coronavirus.

While the route of the procession is "lined by personnel from the Royal Navy, Royal Marines, The Highlanders, 4th Battalion Royal Regiment of Scotland and the Royal Air Force," according to the BBC. "Minute guns will be fired by the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery from the east lawn of Windsor Castle for the duration of the procession, the Curfew Tower Bell will toll." Sky News adds.

Contrary to custom, the royals have decided not to wear military uniforms to the funeral. They have decided to wear civilian clothes in order to "avoid embarrassing Prince Harry," The Guardian reports. Harry is not allowed to wear his military gear because he left his senior position last year to live privately in the US with Meghan Markle and their son Archie.

It's not just about Prince Harry though. The Guardian, as well as other British media, suggests that there was also an internal debate as to whether Prince Andrew was allowed to wear an Admiral's uniform to the funeral. The Prince was supposed to be promoted to Admiral on his 60th birthday in 2020, but he withdrew from his official tasks in late 2019 because of his involvement in the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.

After passing the Round Tower of Windsor Castle from the north side, past Norman Gate, the procession will reach St George's Chapel at 14:53 pm. Royal Marines will carry the coffin up the stairs and into the Chapel. There, the service begins at 3 pm with a national minute of silence.

The BBC reports that "only the members of the Royal Family and the duke's private secretary will enter the chapel. The rest of the procession will remain outside."

On top of Prince Philip's coffin, draped in the Duke's flag, will be his naval cap and sword - the one he always wore to official events.

The duration of the funeral service in St George's Chapel has not been announced by the royal family. It is certain, however, that the service will end with the placement of the Duke of Edinburgh in the Royal Vault, under the Quire of the Chapel.

Remember Prince Philip through these historic images