A state funeral will be held in memory of the Right Honourable Brian Mulroney
Commemorative events will be held from March 19 to 23, 2024, in Ottawa and Montréal as part of the state funeral in memory of the Right Honourable Brian Mulroney
OTTAWA, ON, March 15, 2024 /CNW/ - The Government of Canada will hold a state funeral in memory of Canada's 18th Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Brian Mulroney, P.C., C.C., G.O.Q., who passed away on February 29, 2024.
The Right Honourable Brian Mulroney will lie-in-state at the Sir John A. Macdonald Building (144 Wellington Street), in Ottawa, on Tuesday, March 19 and Wednesday, March 20, 2024. On the morning of March 19, dignitaries, including the Governor General of Canada and Prime Minister of Canada, will be invited to express their sympathies to the Mulroney family. Members of the public will then be able to visit and pay their respects from 12:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. on March 19, and from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on March 20. Books of condolences will be available to sign on site. Security screening will be required prior to entering the building.
A lying-in-repose will take place at Saint Patrick's Basilica (460 René-Lévesque Blvd West), in Montréal on Thursday, March 21 and Friday, March 22, 2024. On the morning of March 21, dignitaries and family guests will be invited to express their sympathies to the Mulroney family. Members of the public will be able to visit and pay their respects to the Right Honourable Brian Mulroney from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. on March 21, and from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on March 22. Books of condolences will be available to sign on site. Security screening will be required prior to entering the basilica.
The funeral ceremony will take place at 11 a.m. on Saturday, March 23, 2024, at the Notre-Dame Basilica of Montréal (110 Notre-Dame Street West), in Montréal. Prior to the ceremony, a funeral cortege, including a Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) mounted escort, a Canadian Armed Forces escort and guard of honour, the Royal Canadian Air Force Band, RCMP pallbearers, and honorary pallbearers, will make its way to the Notre-Dame Basilica of Montréal.
The ceremony will feature religious components led by His Grace Christian Lépine, Archbishop of Montréal, and The Very Reverend Miguel Castellanos, PSS, rector of Notre-Dame Basilica. This will include prayers, readings, hymns and a communion. Eulogies will be offered by Caroline Mulroney, the Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, Pierre Karl Péladeau, Wayne Gretzky, James Baker and Jean Charest. During the ceremony, musical interludes will be performed by members of the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal (OSM) and the OSM Chorus, led by internationally renowned conductor Rafael Payare. Canadian artists including The Tenors, Marc Hervieux, Marie-Josée Lord, and Elizabeth Theodora Lapham, granddaughter of the Right Honourable Brian Mulroney, will also perform. Some of the performances will be accompanied by Scott Price on the piano. A 19-gun salute will be conducted at the end of the ceremony from the Clock Tower Pier in the Old Port of Montréal.
Guests invited to the ceremony will include family, friends, current and former government representatives and dignitaries, as well as representatives of organizations to which the Right Honourable Brian Mulroney had a close connection.
Canadians are invited to visit the commemorative webpage to learn more about the life of the Right Honourable Brian Mulroney. Condolence messages may also be shared in the online book of condolences.
The funeral cortege and the ceremony will be broadcast live from Montréal on Canadian Heritage's Facebook and YouTube channels.
The Government of Canada half-masted the National Flag of Canada on the Peace Tower and all federal buildings and establishments in Canada, from February 29 until sunset on the day of the funeral, March 23, 2024.
Federal state funerals in Canada are held to honour and commemorate present or past governors general, present or past prime ministers, and sitting members of the Ministry. In addition, any eminent Canadian may be offered a state funeral at the discretion of the Prime Minister.
In lieu of flowers, those who wish to express sympathy consider making a donation to the Brian Mulroney Institute of Government at St. Francis Xavier University or to the Carrefour international Brian-Mulroney at Université Laval.
In memory of the Right Honourable Brian Mulroney, P.C., C.C., G.O.Q.
SOURCE Canadian Heritage
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