Margaret Thatcher left Parliament for the last time, as a coffin bearing the body of the former prime minister was taken from the Palace of Westminster for her ceremonial funeral at St Paul’s Cathedral.
Draped in a Union flag, the coffin was taken by hearse to the church of St Clement Danes for transfer to a gun carriage for a military procession of a kind usually reserved for senior members of the Royal Family.
Prime Minister David Cameron said the funeral was a “fitting tribute” to a major national figure, and urged the the Iron Lady’s political opponents to show “respect” during the event.
But protesters joined mourners lining the route of the procession, some of them voicing anger over the reported £10 million cost of the funeral. Mr Cameron accepted that opinions were divided over Lady Thatcher’s legacy.
But he said that Britain’s first female prime minister had created a new consensus during her time in power, telling BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “In a way, we are all Thatcherites now.
“She was the first woman prime minister, she served for longer in the job that anyone for 150 years, she achieved some extraordinary things in her life. I think what is happening today is absolutely fitting and right.”
Lady Thatcher’s body laid in rest overnight in the chapel crypt of St Mary Undercroft in the Palace of Westminster, as she paid a final visit to the Parliament which she dominated.
Her children Sir Mark and Carol Thatcher were among close family and friends who paid their respects in a brief but emotional ceremony.
At dawn today, Union flags and the national flags of the UK were lowered to half-mast at Government buildings and other locations across the country as a mark of respect. They will remain lowered until dusk.
Lady Thatcher’s coffin was removed from Parliament by hearse for a journey past some of the scenes of the triumphs and setbacks of her remarkable career.
As it made its way down Whitehall under overcast skies, it passed the gates of Downing Street – Lady Thatcher’s home from 1979, when she arrived as prime minister quoting St Francis of Assisi’s “Where there is despair let us bring hope”, until her tearful departure after being ejected by her own party in 1990.
Prayers will be said at the RAF church of St Clement Danes on The Strand by resident chaplain the Rev David Osborn as the coffin is transferred to a gun carriage of the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery for the military procession to St Paul’s Cathedral.
The carriage will be drawn by six black horses – led by Mister Twister ridden by Captain John Cockburn – down The Strand, Temple Bar, Fleet Street and Ludgate Hill to St Paul’s. The wheels of the 1.5-ton carriage have been changed from steel to rubber so it runs more quietly on the road.
The Band of Her Majesty’s Royal Marines Portsmouth will lead the procession, playing funeral marches by Beethoven, Mendelssohn and Chopin and striking eight bass drum beats to set the pace of precisely 70 steps a minute.
The route will be lined by members of all three services in full ceremonial day dress, officers wearing black armbands, with colours draped and rifle muzzles pointed downwards towards the ground as a mark of respect.
More than 4,000 police officers will be on duty to ensure security amid heightened fears of a terror attack sparked by the bombing of the Boston marathon in the US.
As the gun carriage proceeds, a gun salute will be fired at one-minute intervals from the Tower of London. The Honourable Artillery Company will fire the first gun as its wheels start moving and will cease fire the moment the carriage reaches the West Steps of St Paul’s. Some 17 shots are expected to be fired.
The procession will be met by a guard of honour from the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards and the steps will be lined by members of all three services and 16 Chelsea pensioners as the coffin is borne into the cathedral.
The eight pall-bearers are drawn from Army units, Royal Navy ships and RAF stations with links to the Falklands war, and will be commanded by Major Nick Mott of the Welsh Guards who served in the 1982 conflict.
The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh head a glittering list of dignitaries from around the world, former colleagues and showbusiness stars due to attend the funeral at St Paul’s, who will include Mr Cameron and all members of his Cabinet, as well as more than 30 members of Lady Thatcher’s cabinets from 1979 to 1990.
Around 170 countries are represented by dignitaries, including two heads of state, 11 serving prime ministers, members of royal families, foreign ministers and ambassadors.
But there will be no serving ministers from either the US or French administrations.
President Barack Obama’s official delegation will be led by George Shultz and James Baker, who both served as secretaries of state during the Thatcher era, while French president Francois Hollande has sent Elisabeth Guigou, a close adviser to Francois Mitterrand while Lady Thatcher was in office.
Former US vice-president Dick Cheney and ex-secretary of state Henry Kissinger are also due to attend in a personal capacity.
In a mark of continuing tensions over the Falkland Islands, Argentine ambassador Alicia Castro declined an invitation to attend.
Lady Thatcher’s grandchildren Michael and Amanda will walk ahead of the coffin as it enters the cathedral, carrying cushions bearing the insignia of the Order of the Garter and Order of Merit, which will be laid on the altar. A single half-muffled bell will toll as the cortege arrives.
At the former prime minister’s request, the funeral will be framed by British music, with pieces by UK composers played at the beginning and end of the service.
Lady Thatcher chose the hymn He Who Would Valiant Be, while the Charles Wesley hymn Love Divine, All Loves Excelling will reflect the influence of her Methodist upbringing, and the final hymn will be the patriotic verse I Vow To Thee My Country.
The organ will play Psalm 84, set to the music of Johannes Brahms, which is the same piece Lady Thatcher chose to be played at the funeral of her husband Sir Denis Thatcher in 2003.
Mr Cameron and Amanda Thatcher will give readings from the King James Bible, and the Bishop of London Richard Chartres will deliver the address.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, will give the blessing before the coffin is borne out of the cathedral and returned to a hearse which will take it to the Royal Hospital Chelsea ahead of a private cremation at Mortlake Crematorium in south west London.