Britain bids farewell to "Iron Lady" Thatcher at grand funeral

[bijou]

Britain gave Margaret Thatcher its grandest political funeral in half a century on Wednesday as her flag-draped coffin was borne through central London on a horse-drawn gun carriage, though a few boos were a reminder of her divisive rule and legacy.

In an event comparable to Winston Churchill's funeral in 1965, the Queen joined top British and foreign politicians past and present to pay her final respects to the "Iron Lady" who - for better or for ill - transformed the country.

Thousands of supporters lined the streets of London as Thatcher's casket made its final journey from the center of British political power in Westminster to St Paul's Cathedral.

Honored with a gun salute from the Tower of London every minute and the silencing of the bells of Big Ben, military bandsmen played Beethoven, Mendelssohn and Chopin. More than 700 military personnel and thousands of police provided security. ...

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