LONDON ENGLAND – Sometimes we all find out that even if you are the royal guard, you are only human. People tend to forget that exhaustion is an actual thing and people sometimes can only do so much.
Being in the royal guard means that one goes through rigors training of the mind and body so endure long hours of work. This is what happened to a guard whiles he was guarding the queens coffin.
The man had fainted in front of shocked onlookers in Westminster Hall in London, while he was guarding Queen Elizabeth’s coffin as it lay in state. The coffin is being given around the clock guard as there are thousands and thousands of people who are coming to pay their final respects to their longest reigning monarch.
The Queen’s coffin is being guarded around the clock as thousands of people line up to pay their respects to the monarch. Apart from just standing there in one motion they guard also have to make sure people don’t let their emotions run wild and misbehave. So apart from physically standing there on their shift, they also have to be mentally alert.
This might sound easy but it can be draining and it cannot be helped if the exhaustion is too much to bear for a mere mortal.
The vigil was briefly interrupted when the guard began swaying and then suddenly fell from the podium. While other guards remained stoic and in place, police officers rushed to help the man who remained lying on the floor of the hall.
The guard was nearing the end of his shift and had been standing in place for around an hour. He swayed for around 15 minutes and then collapsed.
It comes as thousands of mourners continue to line up in a queue snaking around the centre of London to pay their respects to the Queen.