THE nation came to a standstill as the greatest funeral procession for 50 years wound its way through London today with three generations of the Royal Family following it on foot.

The Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Charles and Princes William and Harry were among 14 senior royals accompanying the Queen Mother's coffin from St James's Palace to Westminster Hall where it will lie in state.

The teenage princes, bare-headed and dressed in mourning suits, in contrast to other family members in their military uniforms, were taking part in the second royal funeral procession of their short lives.

In 1997 they were boys following the coffin of their mother, Diana, Princess of Wales.

Shortly before 11.30am the Queen Mother's coffin, draped in her personal standard and surmounted by her diamond-encrusted crown, was carried from the Queen's Chapel at St James's Palace and placed on a horse-drawn gun carriage.

A loving message from the Queen to her mother brought a human touch to the occasion. A card on top of the Queen Mother's coffin read simply: "In loving memory, Lilibet."

Amid all the pomp and splendour, it was a reminder of the Queen's personal sense of loss.

The Royal Family were immediately behind the coffin, followed by members of the Queen Mother's personal staff, including her loyal page William Tallon, known affectionately as "Backstairs Billy".

The royal mourners stood in perfect silence for several minutes awaiting the signal to move off on the stroke of 11.30am. A military band played as the half-mile long procession made its way down The Mall, the crown atop the coffin sparkling in the spring sunshine.

To the strains of Beethoven's Funeral March, and as the first of 28 rounds of a 28-gun royal salute was fired - one for every minute of the procession - the Queen Mother's stately cortege began its journey to lie in state at Westminster Hall.

From across the UK and around the world, people had gathered to witness the pomp and pageantry.

Some camped overnight, many more began arriving at dawn to secure a good view of the ceremony.

Not since Sir Winston Churchill was laid to rest in 1965 or the Queen Mother's husband King George VI passed away in 1952 has there been a military spectacle of greater calibre.