A meticulous plan for life after the Queen has been put into motion after she died on September 8 aged 96.
Operation London Bridge began on what has been internally dubbed ‘D-Day’ with the Queen’s private secretary Edward Young informing the prime minister, senior ministers and the cabinet secretary.
Queen Elizabeth II died peacefully at her Scottish home in Balmoral, ending a remarkable reign of more than 70 years.
King Charles III’s reign began on the death of his mum and prime minister Liz Truss led on tributes to Her Majesty.
The Royal Family and the public have now entered a period of mourning, with the Queen’s funeral set for September 19.
A top secret document about what would happen next was leaked in September 2021, which allows Metro.co.uk to detail what will happen in the days leading up to the state funeral alongside more recently released information.
King Charles and Camilla returned to London for an audience with the prime minister.
The Queen’s coffin remained at her private home in Balmoral, draped in the Royal Standard with a wreath of her favourite flowers.
An online book of condolence has been opened by the public.
Royal salutes were fired by the Honourable Artillery Company at the Tower of London and in Hyde Park from 1pm. 96 shots were fired for each year of The Queen’s life.
During the period of royal mourning flags at royal residences will be flown at half mast, except for the Royal Standard when the King is in residence.
Follow Metro.co.uk’s live blog for the latest updates, and sign Metro.co.uk’s book of condolence to Her Majesty here.
King Charles made his first address to the country, where he paid tribute to his mother and named Prince William as the new Prince of Wales.
‘Queen Elizabeth was a life well lived; a promise with destiny kept and she is mourned most deeply in her passing. That promise of lifelong service I renew to you all today’ he said.
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The Accession Council convened and Charles held his first Privy Council meeting. He made his formal declaration about the death of the Queen and was formally proclaimed the new King.
Three trumpeters fanfared the proclamation at 11am, which was read from the Friary Court balcony at St James’s Palace.
After flying at half-mast the day before, Union flags went back up to full-mast at 1pm and will remain there for 24 hours to coincide with the proclamations before returning to half-mast.
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The Queen’s coffin is expected to be driven to her smallest palace, Holyroodhouse, in Edinburgh which was her official residence in Scotland. Operation Unicorn – the Scottish version of Operation London Bridge – has been launched.
The journey is more than 100 miles and will take five hours by car. People are likely to stand in the street and watch as it passes to pay their respects.
The coffin will then rest overnight in the Throne Room.
The Queen’s coffin is expected to be moved to St Giles’s Cathedral by processing along the Royal Mile.
The public could get to walk past her coffin while she is lying in state there, and members of the Royal Family will perform the ‘Vigil of Princes’, including King Charles and Camilla, the Queen Consort.
The King will inspect the Guard of Honour. The Ceremony of the Keys on the forecourt of the Palace of Holyroodhouse.
He will then attend a Service of Prayer and reflection for the life of Her Majesty The Queen at St Giles’ Cathedral, before returning to Holyrood.
At the Palace, The King will have an audience with the First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, followed by an audience with the Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament.
In the evening, His Majesty the King will hold a Vigil with Members of the Royal Family at St Giles’ Cathedral.
The House of Commons and House of Lords will meet in Westminster to hold a Motion of Condolence.
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The Queen’s body will be brought to London, either by plane or by train. The coffin will then travel by hearse to Buckingham Palace, where people will line the streets to watch it pass.
After the coffin is greeted by a Guard of Honour from the King’s Guard at the Grand Entrance, it will be moved to the Bow Room so the King and her family can pay their respects and say prayers.
Then it will be moved to the Throne Room, where the Queen’s former staff can visit and pay their respects.
King Charles will continue his tour of the four home nations by travelling to Belfast, and then on to Hillsborough Castle. There, they will view an exhibition on Her Majesty The Queen’s long association with Northern Ireland.
The King will then meet the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and party leaders and receive a message of condolence led by the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly. The King will make his reply.
After a short reception at Hillsborough, The King and The Queen Consort will travel to St Anne’s Cathedral for a service of Prayer and reflection.
Before the service, His Majesty will meet leaders from all the major faiths in Northern Ireland. The King and The Queen Consort will then leave Belfast for London.
An official procession of the coffin will take place from Buckingham Palace to Westminster, with people lining the streets.
The lying-in-state is then expected to begin at Westminster Hall at the Houses of Parliament, which will be opened with a service by the Archbishop of Canterbury and another ‘Vigil of the Princes’ by the Royal Family.
The event should last four days, and demands posed by this unprecedented moment in British national life are so great officials predicted London could become ‘full’ for the first time ever.
Hundreds of thousands of members of the public are expected to walk past the coffin, as they did before the Queen Mother’s funeral in 2002.
A massive security operation to deal with the huge crowds has been planned, called Operation Feather.
The lying-in-state will continue as preparations and rehearsals for the funeral begin.
Heads of state will begin to arrive from other countries to attend the funeral.
An evening reception is expected to be held for people attending the funeral at Lancaster House.
Guests will include heads of state, governors general, realm prime ministers and others.
They may also attend the lying-in-state while the new King has a formal meeting with Ms Truss.
Monday, September 19 is the date of Her Majesty’s funeral. It will be a state funeral at Westminster Abbey in central London.
It will be televised and is set to be a bank holiday.
The original plans – which of course are subject to change – say a gun carriage will take the Queen’s coffin to the Abbey, and will be pulled by sailors using ropes rather than horses.
Senior members of the Royal Family will follow behind, similarly to how they did for the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral.
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The military will join the procession and line the streets, along with members of the public.
Westminster Abbey can hold a congregation of up to 2,000 people, which will include heads of state, prime ministers and presidents, royals from across the world and other key figures who the Queen knew.
A national silence will be held in memory of the late monarch.
The Queen will be buried in the King George VI Memorial Chapel at Windsor Castle, alongside her late husband Prince Philip who will be reburied.
The 10 days national period of mourning will come to an end the day after the funeral, September 20.
The Royal Family will remain in mourning until seven days after the funeral, meaning that their mourning period will end on September 26.
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