Tutu was placed at his request in a simple wooden box with carnations on it. He had indicated that he did not want a lavish funeral.

Princess Mabel will attend the funeral on Saturday. She worked with Tutu at The Elders, a think tank dealing with major global issues that Tutu chaired between 2007 and 2013. She previously said she was deeply saddened by his death.

“I will always be grateful for how he stood by me when my husband was seriously injured,” the princess said on Sunday. “Arch called me daily during the long months Friso was unconscious. Sometimes we talked for hours, sometimes just a few minutes. But he told me he was always there for me.”

King will not go to South Africa

The funeral was not attended by King Willem-Alexander, Queen Maxima and Princess Beatrix. They conveyed their condolences to the Toto family.

Toto’s daughter traveled to South Africa on Monday. Living in the Netherlands where she works as a minister, Mpho Tutu said, “He was once described as the smallest giant.” devotion. “He was with the mighty of the earth, and sat with the youngest, the weak, the poor, and the most needy. He did it with the same love and laughter.”