George VI's state funeral was the first British monarch's procession broadcast on television, drawing 304,000 mourners through Westminster Hall.
Key Facts
- Date of death
- 6 February 1952, Sandringham House
- Date of funeral
- 15 February 1952
- Mourners through Westminster Hall
- 304,000 people
- Queue length at Westminster Hall
- up to 4 miles
- Lying in state duration
- 3 days
- First TV broadcast of its kind
- First British monarch's funeral procession on television
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
King George VI died on 6 February 1952 at Sandringham House at the age of 56 following a prolonged illness from cancer, necessitating a full state funeral and the immediate accession of his daughter as Queen Elizabeth II.
The state funeral on 15 February 1952 began with the coffin lying in state at Westminster Hall for three days, followed by a formal procession to Paddington Station and onward by train to Windsor, where a service was held and the king was interred in the royal vault at St George's Chapel.
The funeral's television broadcast, a first for a British monarch's procession, is credited with spurring mass purchases of television sets in the United Kingdom. The king's remains were later relocated to the King George VI Memorial Chapel in 1969, where members of his immediate family, including Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, were subsequently interred.