QUEEN'S SADDEST JOURNEY BEGINS

INSIDE: OUR COLUMNISTS SHARE HEARTFELT AND DEEPLY PERSONAL MEMORIES

- Leo McKinstry Daily Express columnist

THE grief is still raw, the sorrow profound. As the period of mourning for our beloved Queen continues and she began her final journey yesterday, the shock at her passing remains as powerful as ever.

Reverence for her inspirational example of dedicated service, moral leadership and self-sacrifice is compounded by the feeling of heartfelt loss for a figure who was a constant, reassuring presence in our national life over the seven decades she was on the throne.

Yet amid this sadness, there is also a deep sense of pride in Britain. Queen Elizabeth's death came as a hammer blow, but it also has brought out the best in our country.

The end of her uniquely long reign has been a severe challenge for the public, the Royal Family, the military and the civic institutions, and they have all responded magnificently.

In this momentous hour, the eyes of the world are upon Britain, and our land has rarely been seen in a better light.

It is as if the historic importance of occasion, combined with respect for the Queen, has meant that all the participants in this epic drama want to meet the highest standards of conduct.

The pageantry has been precise, the kingdom unified, the political class harmonious, the public stoical and the King impressive.

What could have been an agonising chapter in our island story has become an uplifting one.

Every event since the Queen's passing has added to the narrative of solemnity.

Yesterday, her coffin was brought by road from Balmoral to Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh, completing the first stage of its odyssey to London later in the week, where it will lie in state in the medieval surroundings of Westminster Hall before the state funeral next Monday.

The sounds and imagery of this six-hour journey were full of poignancy, made all the more touching because Balmoral was perhaps the place that the Queen loved most on earth.