For most of us, when we pass, we’ll basically have to pick between burial or cremation — and if you want a plot, you generally have to pick it out early. Sure, there are other options out there, like having your remains composted , or donating your body to science, but the vast majority of us will go with the more traditional methods. It’s all a personal choice, and one of the most personal choices you’ll ever make.
For Britain’s Royal Family, well, things tend to be planned out ahead of time , and they have little choice in the matter.
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The most recent Royal death saw Prince Philip interred in the Royal Vault of St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle .
Prince Philip, who passed away at age 99 in 2021, joined the likes of King George IV, King George V, and King William IV, among many others in the vault.
However, the Royal Vault isn’t Prince Philip’s final resting place.
After Queen Elizabeth II passes away, Prince Philip’s remains will be moved to join his wife’s. The Queen’s final resting place is likely to be the King George VI Memorial Chapel, which is also at Windsor Castle.
The King George VI Memorial Chapel currently has just three graves.
Queen Elizabeth’s father, King George VI, is buried there, as are her sister, Princess Margaret, and her mother, the Queen Mother, Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon. So, it would be fitting for Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip to join the rest of her family.
However, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip’s final resting place isn’t 100% set in stone.
There’s another option, as yet to be determined. Before Queen Elizabeth II, the U.K.’s longest serving monarch was Queen Victoria. She and her husband, Prince Albert, are interred in their own mausoleum at Frogmore. So, it’s not impossible that similar arrangements could be made for the monarch who surpassed Queen Victoria’s lengthy reign.
