The funeral that divided British opinion began Wednesday morning with a procession to St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, where the former prime minister’s family and hundreds of dignitaries were gathered. The celebration, a state funeral in all but name, raised questions from Thatcher critics about its expense given her divisive legacy in the country. The procession followed the same route as that of Winston Churchill, with six black horses leading a carriage bearing Thatcher’s coffin toward the church on a gray, drizzly day in the capital as 700 military personnel lined Fleet Street and Ludgate Hill.
