 "Jimmy Carter’s state funeral: What happens when ex-US president is laid to rest?")
Jimmy Carter’s state funeral rites continue today (January 9).
Carter, who passed away at age 100 on December 29, was America’s oldest living president.
The country will also observe a National Day of Mourning.
But what is a state funeral? And what will happen during the service?
Let’s take a closer look:
What is a state funeral?
According to BBC, in America a state funeral is usually given to those who have left a huge mark on public life.
It takes place with the permission of the family – and usually occurs over a few days.
Rites are held both in the hometown of the deceased and Washington.
Now, let’s take a brief look at the history of state presidential funerals in America.
White House Historical Association says presidential state funerals are “traditionally five days in length” and “meticulously choreographed.”
“Coordination for the events is conducted by the army’s Military District of Washington and begins early in each presidential term, when a new president is asked to attend to the strange task of imagining his own funeral service,” the association states.
The presidential funerals were modelled on the lines of royal funerals.
The first presidential funeral took place in 1841 after the death of then-President William Henry Harrison.
According to USA Today, a number of presidents in recent decades have had state funerals including Lyndon B Johnson (1973), Ronald Reagan (2004), Gerald R. Ford (2007), and George HW Bush (2018).
Richard Nixon, who passed away in 1994, was an exception.
According to the association Nixon’s family opted for “a simple service at the Nixon Library and Birthplace in California, where in 1994 President Nixon, the first president to resign from office, was buried beside his wife, Patricia Nixon, who predeceased him.”
What happens during state funerals?
According to Fox5Atlanta, it all begins with the sitting president announcing the death of a former president.
This is done via an official proclamation.
Flags are lowered to half-mast across the country for 30 days.
The defence department then takes over organising the state funeral.
However, before the body is brought to Washington, private ceremonies are held in the president’s home state or city.
The president’s body then lies in repose – allowing citizens to pay their respects.
Then, the body is taken to Washington – usually on a special aircraft.
The casket is given military honours and taken through the city by horse-drawn caisson.
The body is then placed in the Rotunda of the Capitol – allowing the public and lawmakers to pay homage.
The casket is placed on a special platform known as the Lincoln Catafalque – which was first used for Abraham Lincoln.
Then, the formal service takes place at the Washington National Cathedral.
Here, luminaries including the current and former presidents eulogise their late brethren.
Hymns are sung and prayers performed.
The ex-president’s body is then returned to their hometown to be buried.
Often, a small private service is held with family or friends.
Finally, the president is laid to rest.
Here, a 21-gun salute or a flyover is given.
What about Carter’s state funeral?
As per BBC, the state funeral rites for Carter began on Saturday (January 4) in Plains, Georgia – where he grew up.
A motorcade with his body drove through his hometown, halted at his childhood home and then headed to Atlanta for a public service at the Carter Center.
The song Hail to the Chief played on Saturday as his body arrived at his presidential center.
Hundreds of people visited the Carter Center to pay respects to the former president.
On Tuesday, Carter’s remains, accompanied by his children and extended family, were brought to Washington.
Hail to the Chief played yet again as his remains were carried out.
The military band also played hymns – Amazing Grace and Blessed Assurance for the outspoken Baptist evangelical who called himself a “born-again Christian” when he sought and won the presidency in 1976.
In Georgia, eight military pallbearers held Carter’s casket as cannons fired on the tarmac nearby. They carried it to a vehicle that lifted it to the passenger compartment of the aircraft, the blue and white Boeing 747 variant that is known as Air Force One when the sitting president is on board.
Carter never travelled as president on the jet, which first flew as Air Force One in 1990 with George HW Bush.
Special Air Mission 39 departed Dobbins air reserve base north of Atlanta and arrived at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.
The scene repeated outside Washington. The former president’s casket was removed from the plane, cannons fired and a military band played. A hearse emblazoned with the seal of the president joined a motorcade that steered toward Washington.
In Washington, his hearse stopped at the US Navy Memorial, where his remains were transferred to a horse-drawn caisson – nods to Carter’s place as the lone US Naval Academy graduate to become commander-in-chief.
A motorcade then carried the casket into Washington for its final journey to the Capitol.
A bipartisan delegation of members of Congress were led in to the Capitol rotunda by Senators Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, Democrats who represent Carter’s home state.
Three of the nine US supreme court justices were also present.
Justices John Roberts, Brett Kavanaugh and Elena Kagan stood next to the Washington DC mayor, Muriel Bowser, in the rotunda.
The US army band brass quintet played as people awaited the casket’s arrival.
Finally, Carter’s body was brought to the Capitol – where it lies in state.
His remains now rest in a wooden casket being carried and guarded by military pallbearers in their impeccable dress uniforms.
What about today?
The funeral service for Carter will be held at the Washington National Cathedral.
The rites will begin at 10 am.
“President Carter exemplified what it means to translate faith into action,” a statement from the Washington National Cathedral read as per CNN. “From his selflessness and humanitarian spirit, we draw inspiration. And from his example of fidelity and generous faith, we find hope that we might yet learn to embody his example of good and faithful service.”
President Joe Biden is set to deliver the eulogy.
“With his compassion and moral clarity, he worked to eradicate disease, forge peace, advance civil rights and human rights, promote free and fair elections, house the homeless, and always advocate for the least among us. He saved, lifted, and changed the lives of people all across the globe,” Biden had said.
As per Forbes, Carter’s grandson Jason, who is also chairman of the Carter Center, will also give an address.
The New York Times reported that eulogies written by the late former president Gerald Ford and former vice president Walter Mondale will be read by their sons.
As per BBC, all four living ex-presidents – Bill Clinton, George W Bush, Barack Obama – are expected to attend.
Every living ex-president attended the funeral of George HW Bush in 2018, which was also held at the Washington National Cathedral.
Trump, who takes power in less than two weeks, has also said that he plans to attend.
Carter’s body will then be moved to his hometown of Plains, Georgia for a private service.
He will be buried in a plot beside his late wife Rosalyn.
With inputs from agencies
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