* Funeral for Prince Philip begins at 1400 GMT
* Prince Harry to appear in public
* Royal procession behind Philip's coffin
(Recasts headline, adds context)
By Andrew MacAskill and Guy Faulconbridge
WINDSOR, England, April 17 (Reuters) - Queen Elizabeth will
bid a final farewell to Prince Philip, her husband of more than
seven decades, at a ceremonial funeral on Saturday, with the
nation set to hold a minute's silence to mark the passing of a
pivotal figure in the British monarchy.
The coffin of Philip, who died aged 99 on April 9 at Windsor
Castle, will be driven to the funeral at St George's Chapel in
the castle on a specially modified Land Rover.
Prince Charles, heir to the throne, and Philip's other three
children will walk behind in procession. Prince William and his
brother Prince Harry - who has returned from the United States
to attend - will walk separated by their cousin Peter Phillips.
The queen, who says the death has left a huge void, will be
driven behind in the State Bentley. In the service, which starts
at 3 p.m. (1400 GMT), the 94-year-old monarch will stand alone
due to COVID-19 restrictions as her husband's coffin is lowered
into the Royal Vault of the ancient chapel.
"She's the queen, she will behave with the extraordinary
dignity and extraordinary courage that she always does. And at
the same time, she is saying farewell to someone to who she was
married for 73 years," said Justin Welby, the Archbishop of
Canterbury, who will help officiate at the service.
Philip, who married Elizabeth in 1947, helped the young
queen adapt the monarchy to the changing world of the post-World
War Two era as the loss of empire and the decline of deference
challenged the world's most prominent royal family.
She has now been widowed just as she grapples with one of
the gravest crises to hit the royal family in decades -
allegations of racism and neglect by it from her grandson Harry
and his American-born wife Meghan.
ATTENTION ON HARRY
Much media attention will focus on the royals' behaviour
towards Harry as he makes his first public appearance with the
family since the couple gave an explosive interview to Oprah
Winfrey last month.
In the interview they accused one unnamed royal of making a
racist comment, and said Meghan's pleas for help when she felt
suicidal were ignored.
The couple, who moved to Los Angeles and quit royal duties
last year, laid bare their perceptions of the family's attitudes
in what amounted to a critique of the old-fashioned customs of
an ancient institution.
Meghan said she had been silenced by "the Firm" while Harry
said his father, Charles, had refused to take his calls. Harry
said both Charles and his brother William were trapped in the
royal family.
Meghan, who is pregnant, will not attend Saturday's funeral
as her doctor has advised against it, Buckingham Palace said.
Mourners will eschew the tradition of wearing military
uniforms, a step newspapers said was to prevent embarrassment to
Harry, who despite serving two tours in Afghanistan during his
army career, is not be entitled to wear a uniform because he was
stripped of his honorary military titles.
"We're not going to be drawn into those perceptions of
drama, or anything like that," a Buckingham Palace spokesman
said. "This is a funeral. The arrangements have been agreed, and
they represent her majesty's wishes."
Prince Andrew, who stepped down from public duties in 2019
over controversy surrounding his what he termed his "ill-judged"
association with late U.S. financier Jeffrey Epstein, had wanted
to wear an admiral's uniform at the funeral, British media
reported.
QUEEN ALONE
The palace has emphasised that while the occasion will have
the due pageantry that marks the passing of a senior royal, it
remains an occasion for a mourning family to mark the passing of
a husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather.
There will be just 30 mourners inside the chapel for the
service because of COVID-19 restrictions.
Archbishop Welby, leader of the worldwide Anglican
Communion, said he expected the funeral to resonate with the
millions of people around the world who have lost loved ones
during the pandemic.
Philip's dedication to his duty earned him widespread
popularity in Britain, but he was also criticised by some for a
number of off-the-cuff racist or abrupt comments which shocked
princes, priests and presidents.
"He was authentically himself, with a seriously sharp wit,
and could hold the attention of any room due to his charm and
also because you never knew what he might say next," Harry said
of his grandfather.
British television stations have cleared their schedules to
show the funeral and millions are due to watch, though there
have been over 100,000 complaints to the British Broadcasting
Corporation over its blanket coverage since Philip died.
Philip was a decorated Royal Navy veteran of World War Two
and his funeral, much of which was planned in meticulous detail
by the prince himself, will have a strong military feel, with
personnel from across the armed forces playing prominent roles.
(Writing by Michael Holden and Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by
Mike Collett-White, Kate Holton and Frances Kerry)