A Lasting Sense of Pride – Heber’s Final Duty for The Queen

Last month, Heber Ackland was at the heart of one of the most watched events in history, when he became involved in the state funeral of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on Monday 19 September 2022.

One year earlier, Heber became the Director of Selborne Programmes for the University of Lincoln, based at Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth.

His current role involves delivering and improving education and training as part of a key partnership between the university and The Royal Navy.

Before coming to the University of Lincoln, Heber had a 30-year career in the Royal Navy, and as part of this he was an Equerry to the Queen between 2004 and 2007.

When he saw the news that the Queen has passed away, Heber knew he now had an important role to play.

“My role was to act as Pall Bearer” said Heber when asked on his involvement on the day.

“I marched alongside the coffin during the Procession from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster on the Wednesday, and again for the Processions in London and Windsor during the State Funeral on the following Monday.”

“There were twelve of us who had the honour of performing this duty.  All of us are serving or, like me, retired members of the Armed Forces who worked for the Queen as her Equerry-in-Waiting, a personal aide.  This role involved overseeing her official programme of calls, accompanying her on UK and overseas visits and planning her engagement with the Armed Services.

“I have known since I was an Equerry that, one day, my colleagues and I would probably be called on to perform a role at the funeral of Her Majesty the Queen, and you pray that day is a long way off. Of course, in the meantime, you try to make sure that at the very least you have all your uniform and can still fit into it! 

“I found out from the news and soon after received the formal notification to report to London within two days. That was the point at which things got very busy while my team at the University of Lincoln did a fantastic job in covering everything on the work front while I was away.”

The death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was announced on Thursday 8 September, and this started a national mourning period of ten days in the UK. During this time, over 250,000 people went to pay their respects to the Queen as she lied in state. It is estimated that 4.1 billion people all over the world watched the funeral on television and online.

“There were just ten days from the moment the sad news was announced until the State Funeral.  Ten days for the Royal Households, Government, Armed Forces, Police, Devolved and Civic authorities, and countless others, to coordinate a huge and complex series of major state events. 

“I take my hat off to all those involved, not least those behind the scenes who enabled it all to happen smoothly and safely.

“For many of us on parade, we had been busy doing other things when the call came.  I spoke to one 17-year-old sailor in the Royal Navy Gun Carriage team on the day of the funeral who only joined the Navy a few months ago and was in the middle of her professional training.  Less than two weeks later she was part of this immaculate, highly drilled team!

“To get to that point involved, for everyone, a lot of intense practice and rehearsals, often in the middle of the night, until we got it perfect.  All of this was overseen by some excellent instructors and organisers who kept us all on track, and who were able to fine tune and adjust the plans when we encountered things that didn’t work.”

From the moment the Queen’s death was announced, to the end of the funeral at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor, the country went through emotions that many people have never experienced, as the UK started to get used to the idea that HM Queen Elizabeth, someone who has been part of our lives for 96 years, was no longer with us. What did it feel like to be so closely involved with such a significant event?

“As you can imagine, you feel a whole range of emotions at different times over the ten days.  Firstly, the deep sadness at the loss of our Queen, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and, to many of us, someone we had experienced as a wonderfully caring boss. 

“This was followed by a lot of nervousness, especially early on, about the scale of the event and not wanting to let the King or the country down. 

“Then a growing feeling of pride as you feel part of something quite extraordinary and memorable bringing people everywhere together.

“My two young children watched the funeral and understood something of what was going and were pleased to say their daddy was part of it.

“Finally, I remember feeling an uplifting sense of everyone doing their one last duty to the Queen in a manner I hope and believe she would have approved of. It was moving, even uplifting as we processed through London and Windsor and attended the services in Westminster Abbey and St George’s Chapel, Windsor. “

“There was great dignity and respectful silence interspersed with ripples of applause and occasional heartfelt shouts of ‘Thank you, Your Majesty.’ I think that says a lot about how she’ll be missed and how her commitment to duty was appreciated for all her 70 years of service.”

Heber was not the only funeral attendee with links to the University of Lincoln. Russ Beardsall graduated in Mental Health Nursing in 2019 and went on to work for the Royal Navy. Russ was part of the Royal Navy State Gun Crew on the day.