Buckingham Palace has announced that Queen Elizabeth II passed away at the age of 96. The Queen died on Thursday, September 8, at Balmoral Castle, after reigning for 70 years.
The day the Queen dies is the culmination of a procedure known as “Operation London Bridge,” which has been in place since the 1960s.
In London, a notification of the passing was posted on the gates of Buckingham Palace. The message remained up for 24 hours and was visible to those waiting in line along Constitution Hill, the street next to the palace. Flags were flown at half-staff in Royal homes, government buildings, and military institutions around the country.
The schedule for the Queen’s State Funeral was revealed by Buckingham Palace on Monday. The Queen’s body will lie in state at Westminster Hall in London until September 19, when she will be laid to rest. The funeral will take place at Westminster Abbey.
10-day Mourning Period
On September 8, the Queen passed away, and that day is referred to as D-Day. according to Operation London Bridge planning. The government announced a period of national mourning to last until the day of the state burial.
The Queen’s coffin was transported to Balmoral Castle in Scotland, where staff members paid their respects.
In his first broadcast address to the nation as king, King Charles paid a touching homage to his late “darling mom,” Queen Elizabeth, and pledged to serve as monarch with “loyalty, respect, and love,” as she had done for the last 70 years.
The military procession from Buckingham Palace was intended to highlight the Queen’s seven decades as head of state as the national mourning process moved to the broad boulevards and historic sites of the UK capital.
As the procession passed, thousands of people who had been waiting for hours along The Mall outside the palace and other points along the route held up phones and cameras and others wiped away tears. Applause erupted as the coffin moved across Horse Guards Parade.
The national mourning period traditionally would take 10 days, but on September 9, Buckingham Palace issued a statement stating that King Charles III had sought an extension, with the mourning period extending until 7 days after Queen Elizabeth’s funeral.
- D+1 (September 9): The government announced a nationwide day of mourning that would last until the completion of the state burial.
- D+2 (September 10): The Accession Council gathered in St James’ Palace, the sovereign’s official home, to establish Charles’s position as king and to appoint the successor.
- D+3 (September 11): The queen’s coffin was transported from Balmoral Castle to Edinburgh. It arrived at Holyrood Palace, the monarch’s official home in Scotland, where it was welcomed and escorted to the throne room by a military bearer party.
- D+4 (September 12): The king and other royal family members will accompany the coffin on foot as it is carried in a procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St. Giles’ Cathedral on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile.
- D+5 (September 13): The coffin is transported to Edinburgh Airport before being flown to Buckingham Palace and put in the Bow Room.
- D+6 (September 14): The coffin will be transported to the Palace of Westminster atop a gun carriage.
- D+7 (September 15): King Charles will go to Wales for a service at Llandaff Cathedral before attending a motion of condolence in the Welsh Senedd, the national legislature building. He will host a reception at Cardiff Castle and have a meeting with the First Minister and Presiding Officer of the Welsh Assembly.
- D+8 (September 16): In the late afternoon, Charles will meet with the governor generals and the prime ministers of the 15 Commonwealth nations where he is the head of state.
- D+9 (September 17): Charles may host a reception for foreign royals who are attending the burial. He will host an early-evening reception for all of the visiting heads of state, prime ministers, and governors general.
- D+10 (September 19): The Queen will be laid to rest in Westminster Abbey. Family members will follow her coffin on foot as it is carried in procession from the Palace of Westminster to Westminster Abbey. The service will be televised, and there will be a nationwide two-minute silence. Her final resting place will be in the King George VI memorial chapel in St. George’s Chapel, Windsor, where the coffin will be lowered into the royal vault. Senior members of the royal family will attend a private funeral burying ceremony.
What happens after the Queen dies?
The death of the Queen affects more than just the United Kingdom. From embassies to former colonies, Commonwealth, and foreign territories, the list of organizations and countries pledging allegiance to the sovereign is substantial.
The death of the Queen is expected to result in a significant cultural, social, and political transformation in Britain with ramifications felt throughout the world. From something as simple as the new currency will be printed immediately to the closing of The London Stock Exchange on the day of the funeral which will have a significant impact on the economy.
Following the passing of the Queen, Charles immediately took over the reins as king of England. He is now the head of state not just in the United Kingdom, but also in 14 other Commonwealth countries, including Australia and Canada. He will also become the Commonwealth’s 56th leader, albeit this is not a hereditary position after Commonwealth leaders consented to his succession during a conference in London in 2018.
Charles has yet to be coronated, which means he has yet to swear an oath to the country and be properly crowned, blessed, and anointed. Currently, we don’t know when the formal coronation will occur, although it is expected that Charles will be crowned sometime in 2023.
According to experts, Charles, who has consistently favored a “slimmed-down” monarchy, could want a less lavish coronation than the one his mother had. It is widely anticipated that Charles’s event will be more open and multifaith than usual in honor of a multifaith Britain, despite the fact that the coronation is an Anglican religious ritual.
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