11 day tour of Great Britain
How the Queen’s body was preserved for so long

by Axel Witte
09/16/2022, 13:20 (updated)

Queen Elizabeth II is dead and has been for six days. But before finding her final resting place, she still has some mandatory appointments to complete. Lest they become a burden to her people, the corpse must be prepared accordingly. How to do that.

The Queen – a life of duty. Even after her death, the monarch’s remains will not rest until her body is laid to rest in the family vault at St George’s Chapel in the grounds of Windsor Castle on Monday 19 September.

Until then, the coffin with the body of Queen Elizabeth II was and will be carried and exposed for a total of eleven days. Her subjects and her viewers should be able to say goodbye this way. It can almost be said fortunately that the old empire has significantly reduced in size in the last 100 years, otherwise the end of the difficulties would not be in sight.

But even these eleven days between death, transportation, public display, and burial are no small matter, especially when one considers that the putrefaction of the human body begins about a day or two after death. Which brings us to the question of how to prevent passersby from being surprised by the smell of decay as they pay their respects.

embalming probably

Both RTL and “Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland” (RND) have interviewed experts who provide information on possible methods of preserving the corpse. The press spokesman for the Lower Saxony funeral association, Markus Gebauer, explains to the RND: “In order to inhibit the natural process of decomposition, bodily fluids are exchanged with formaldehyde and other chemicals.” To do this, arteries and vessels are opened. What then can be understood by the term embalming, even if nothing is applied to the body from the outside? This embalming can take from two to six hours depending on the condition of the body. In this way, the deceased can be kept in a presentable state for two or three months. The following applies: the faster bodily fluids are exchanged, the better the condition of the corpse can be preserved.

And on RTL, certified thanato practitioner Philipp Berger of the German Embalmers Association explains: “We deal with the preservation of the deceased. This involves temporarily interrupting autolysis, i.e. the decomposition of the body, so that burial or farewell in the open casket may take place at a later date”.

He also advises that embalming can be repeated at regular intervals. For example, if a dead person is going to be presented to people for months or years. “The best example of this is Mr. Lenin in Moscow. He receives injections every 12 months. Depending on the procedure, embalming can suffice for a year,” says Berger. The embalmed body of the Russian revolutionary leader, who died in January 1924, has been in Moscow in a mausoleum Ready.

Do not expect any explanation from the palace.

But the process isn’t just used for celebrities on display. For example, embalming is required if someone dies in Germany and must be transferred to her home country. At least if there is a long time between the occurrence of death and the farewell or burial, the expert informs Berger.

No one knows if the body of the late Queen Elizabeth II was subjected to such treatment, and no explanation is expected from the palace. Like the question of whether the coffin could be empty. However, the Lower Saxony funeral association considers embalming to be highly likely. The “Bild” newspaper would also like to know that the The corpse is preserved with special refrigeration plates, among other things, until the time of burial.

Furthermore, the Queen’s coffin may have been and is being transported in a refrigerated hearse. “Many hearses have separate refrigeration, which can be switched on especially for long-distance transfers,” explains Gebauer.

(This article was first published on Wednesday, September 14, 2022.)