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President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden will be the only American delegates to attend Queen Elizabeth II’s official funeral service in London Monday, but other U.S. dignitaries, including former U.S. presidents have been invited to attend a memorial service for the Queen in Washington, D.C.
All five living former U.S. presidents — including Donald Trump, Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter — have been invited to “a Service of Thanksgiving for the Life of Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II,” co-hosted by the British Embassy at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. next week.
“The Cathedral is honored to host a Service of Thanksgiving for the Life of Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on Wednesday, Sept. 21, in partnership with the British Embassy,” the National Cathedral said in a statement.
The service will be streamed online and will be made publicly available.
PRESIDENT BIDEN FORMALLY ACCEPTS INVITATION TO QUEEN ELIZABETH II’S FUNERAL
An honor guard by the Queen’s Color Squadron, a unit of Britain’s Royal Air Force, will be featured at the service, Sky News reported.
Queen Elizabeth II met with 13 of the last 14 presidents, including each of those who were invited to the memorial service. She met with Biden at Windsor Castle last year. She shared tea with then-President Trump and also watched a military parade during his 2018 visit to the country. She also met with Barack and Michelle Obama several times.
Her majesty also met with President George W. Bush and first lady Laura Bush at the White House in 2007, as well as a visit in the UK in 2003; President Bill Clinton and first fady Hillary in 2000 and again in 1995; and, had dinner at Buckingham Palace with President Jimmy Carter in 1977.
It was not immediately clear Saturday evening if the invited presidents will attend.
QUEEN ELIZABETH II’S COFFIN ARRIVES IN EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND
Biden and the first lady formally have accepted the invitation to attend Queen Elizabeth II’s Sept. 19 funeral, the White House announced a week ago.
In a statement, the Bidens called the Queen “more than a monarch” and someone who “defined an era.”
WINDSOR, ENGLAND – JUNE 13: Queen Elizabeth II with US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden in the Grand Corridor during their visit to Windsor Castle on June 13, 2021 in Windsor, England. (Steve Parsons – WPA Pool/Getty Images)
“In a world of constant change, she was a steadying presence and a source of comfort and pride for generations of Britons, including many who have never known their country without her,” they said.
Queen Elizabeth II passed away on Sept. 8 at Balmoral Castle in Scotland. She was 96.
The National Cathedral, located in northwest Washington, D.C., has been the host of the funerals of former U.S. presidents including Dwight Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, Gerald Ford, and George H.W. Bush.