On the long walk from Admiralty Arch, along The Mall to the gates of Buckingham Palace, thousands of people, some tearful, others silent went to pay their respects to Diana, Princess of Wales. The sun shone on Buckingham Palace but it did nothing to warm the spirit of the people bringing flowers to place at the gates. One moment she was a happy woman in love, some of them said, "now we are saying farewell to her in the only way we know how".
Sadness and shock overwhelmed the faces of those standing next to a statue of Queen Victoria, while the changing of the guard by members of the 1st battalion of the Scots Guards went ahead. They stood in groups, others knelt and prayed, as the sombre music played to a silent audience. Nearby the Union flag at the Houses of Parliament and the Home Office fluttered at half-mast.
Mr Ian White, a taxi-driver from London, described his horror at hearing the news of Diana's death: "I was absolutely stunned by it. When I heard the news early this morning I thought she had been injured seriously but I didn't know she was dead until later on.
"I know I shouldn't really say it but I think the royal family have a lot to answer for. They drove her out of the family and she was really mixed up."
Mr Paul Robertson travelled from Kent to place his carnations at the gates of Buckingham Palace.
"It is an absolute tragedy. The press just never left her alone. I don't think Charles can marry Camilla now. The people just won't have it. No one could even accept it when Diana was alive, they definitely won't now."
For others, their thoughts were on more immediate matters. Clutching a bouquet of lilies, Ms Sarah Cullen did not hold back her tears as she explained that "Diana's fairytale life has come to an end. I know she had her problems but she lived a type of fairytale with the people of Britain."
As the day passed many hundreds of people stood in queues outside the gates of Kensington Palace, where Diana moved after her divorce from Prince Charles a year ago. Candles were lit outside the gates from early morning and as the queue grew longer the floral tributes mounted up on the pavement.
Canon Michael Saward, Canon-in-Residence at St Paul's Cathedral, London spoke yesterday morning of the "tragedy" of the death.
"Sixteen years ago in splendour and ceremony a young woman stood with the man she loved, here in St Paul's Cathedral, to take the marriage vows. The world was carried away by the beauty and simplicity and pageantry. And now, this. Diana, Princess of Wales is dead."
As the people of London woke up to the devastating news that their "Queen of Hearts" had died, there were many poignant reminders of the woman who, over the past 16 years, had become one of the best-known figures in the world. On this sunny Sunday morning many of the shops in the city were closed. Only a few souvenir shops had opened their doors. And there, on the racks of postcards outside was the image of Diana, smiling, beautiful, vibrant.