November 25

John F Kennedy's three-year-old son was seen to salute his father's coffin

England have

The funeral of the assassinated President, John F Kennedy, has taken place in Washington.

An estimated 800,000 Americans lined the streets to watch the coffin's procession from the Capitol, where the president's body had lain in state since yesterday.

The crowd stood in silence, punctuated only by the sound of weeping, as the funeral procession made its way towards St Matthew's Cathedral in central Washington.

The coffin, draped with the Stars and Stripes, lay on a gun carriage drawn by six grey horses. A black riderless horse pranced along behind.

Mr Kennedy's widow, Jacqueline Kennedy, and her two children, three-year-old John Kennedy junior, and five-year-old Caroline, rode behind in a black car, accompanied by his brothers, Robert and Edward.

Then came the long procession of guests, representing every continent in the world in one of the most distinguished gathering of foreign dignitaries ever assembled in the history of the United States.

They included, for Britain, the Duke of Edinburgh, the Prime Minister, Sir Alec Douglas-Home, and the Leader of the Opposition, Harold Wilson.

President de Gaulle of France was among them, as was President de Valera of Ireland, Chancellor Erhard of West Germany, and the Ethiopian Emperor, Haile Selassie.

Also among the mourners, in apoignantrecognition of the dead president's efforts to foster peace around the world, was the Soviet first deputy Prime Minister, Anastas Mikoyan, representing Nikolai Khrushchev.

The requiem mass at St Matthew's was led by Cardinal Cushing of Boston.

It included a reading of the entire inaugural address, delivered by John F Kennedy in January 1961, with perhaps his most famous words: "Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country."

As the coffin left the church after the ceremony, three-year-old John Kennedy Junior was seen to step forward for a moment and put his hand to his forehead in what appeared to be a childish salute.

The president was buried in Arlington Cemetery to a 21-gun salute and three musket volleys.

As a bugle sounded the Last Post, the remains of John F Kennedy were lowered into the grave.

The time was 2034 GMT, and the short but momentous era of America's youngest elected president was over.    

Overthrown President George Papadopoulos: under heavy guard

The bloodless coup was orchestrated by the head of the feared military police, Brigadier Demetrios Ionnides.

There appears to have been little or no resistance when tanks rolled into Athens and troops took up positions around government buildings shortly before dawn.

Former president George Papadopoulos is thought to be under heavy guard at his seaside villa 20 miles from the capital.

Lieutenant-General Phaedon Gizikis, commander of the First Army, has been sworn in as his successor.

Soon after the coup all telephone services were suspended. Athens International Airport was closed but reopened after a few hours.

A curfew was also imposed but is due to be lifted tomorrow morning.

A radio broadcast announced the overthrow of the government was supported by the army, navy and air force and said it was a "continuation of the revolution of 1967", when the Greek colonels seized control.

President Papadopoulos has been in power since that revolution and has earned a reputation as a virtualdictator.

He appointed himself prime minister, foreign minister, defence minister and finally president.

Greek prisons began to fill up with political prisoners and his secret police were widely feared.

No air of tension was reported in Athens after the coup and exiled Greek publisher Helen Vlachos told the BBC the former president would not be missed.

"The people of Greece have got rid of the most hated Greek for a century. I don't think anyone was so bitterly hated - he humiliated the Greek people," she said.

poignant: keenly distressing to the mind or feelings（令人痛苦的）

dictator: a ruler who is unconstrained by law（獨裁者）