It was a farewell message from King Charles III, the Queen’s eldest son and heir, which simply read: “With love and devoted memory. Charles R.” The note showed that Charles has started using “R” for “Rex” — Latin for “king” — the initial usually used by the sovereign when signing correspondence. Queen Elizabeth signed as ‘Elizabeth R’. for “Regina”, or queen. Personal notes on the coffins of those who have public funerals have been an unofficial tradition in the royal family for decades. The Queen previously left notes above the coffins of her mother, Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, who died in 2002, and her husband, Prince Philip, who died last year. For her mother, the Queen wrote her farewell message in the same Buckingham Palace bearing the Great Seal of the Realm as Charles did for her funeral procession on Monday. For her husband of 74 years, he allegedly used her personal stationery. In both notes, the Queen signed her messages not as ‘Regina’ but the more familiar ‘Lillibet’, her maiden name. A memorable sight from Princess Diana’s funeral in 1997 was the envelope nestled in the white spray of flowers and addressed by one of her children, Prince William, then 15, and Prince Harry, then 12. It simply read, “Mummy”. Parting notes have not been exclusively exchanged between members of the royal family: When Queen Elizabeth’s father, King George VI, died in 1952, Prime Minister Winston Churchill left a note in the floral tribute for the king that read “For bravery’, the same words are inscribed on the Victoria Cross, the highest honor awarded to members of the British armed forces. Apart from Charles’ personal note, the flowers on the Queen’s coffin told a story of their own. According to Buckingham Palace, the king requested that the wreath contain flowers and foliage cut from the gardens of Buckingham Palace, Clarence House – where William, Prince of Wales and his wife, Catherine, Princess of Wales, officially reside in London – and Highgrove House, where Charles and his wife, Camilla, Queen Consort, live in Gloucestershire. The foliage includes rosemary, which symbolizes memory. English oak, symbolizing the power of love. and myrtle, a plant that symbolizes a happy marriage and which grew from a sprig of myrtle in Elizabeth’s wedding bouquet in 1947. At the king’s request, the wreath is made in an environmentally sustainable way, the palace said. At the King’s request, the wreath contains foliage of rosemary, English oak and myrtle (cut from a plant grown by Myrtle in the Queen’s wedding bouquet) and flowers, in shades of gold, pink and deep burgundy, with touches of white, cut from the gardens of the Royal Residences. pic.twitter.com/5RteIWahuW — The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) September 19, 2022
