German and Italian presidents to attend Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral

The Italian and German presidents have become the latest foreign dignitaries to confirm they will attend Elizabeth II’s funeral in London next week.

Rome’s Sergio Mattarella and Berlin’s Frank-Walter Steinmeier will be among hundreds of politicians and royals travelling to the British capital for the historic occasion, which will take place at 11am on 19 September.

There has been speculation about who will be granted an invitation to the service, as space in Westminster Abbey is limited to a maximum of 2,200 people.

US president Joe Biden and New Zealand’s prime minister Jacinda Ardern have both said they will fly over for the state funeral, while other leaders including France’s Emmanuel Macron are also expected to be in attendance.

So will members of other European royal families from countries such as Belgium, Denmark, Spain and Sweden.

Given that space is at a premium, the British Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office has issued guidance that only the heads of state and their partners can attend. Other relatives and staff members will not be permitted.

This comes as Politico learned that foreign dignitaries will be unable to travel in their own cars to the state funeral. Instead, they will be bussed there together from a site in west London.

Reflecting on the scale of the occasion, John Kampfner, of the Chatham House think tank, said the Queen’s funeral will be like few others.

“There have been great state funerals before — of American presidents, of Nelson Mandela and others. But quite simply the queen was the most famous person in the world, and as a result I think there will be an attendance list that will be unprecedented,” he said.

The Queen died at Balmoral, her Scottish residence, last Thursday after a reign of more than 70 years. Her son Charles became King on her death and was formally proclaimed as the new sovereign by the Accession Council in London on Saturday.