The death of Queen Elizabeth II brings into motion a plan that will be carried out for the next 10 days. The passing of Queen Elizabeth II marks the end of a 70-year-long reign, beginning in 1952.
For the next 10 days, the entirety of the United Kingdom will be mourning the death of the queen, with 10 days of the solemn ceremony.
The plan for the queen’s funeral has been in the making for years now. Code-named London Bridge, the plan will guide the country’s next several weeks, including the succession to the new monarch, a national mourning period, the queen’s funeral, and ending with the ultimate coronation of King Charles III, the queen’s eldest son.
This article will dive into what will occur in the next 10 days. These plans may change in the days ahead.
Friday
Flags on official buildings will fly at half-mast. Flags in London’s Parliament Square and the Mall will be adorned with black crepe and tassel. The queen’s coffin will move into the ballroom at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, where staff members will be able to pay their respects.
Prince Charles will officially become the new monarch of Britain and Northern Island, as well as head of Commonwealth countries.
Saturday
The king will give say an oath and give a speech in a meeting called the Ascension Council. The meeting will consist of current and former politicians, judges, as well as the Archbishop of Canterbury, a senior clergyman of the Church of England.
After the speech, the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery will fire a 41-gun salute in Hyde Park, while the Honourable Artillery Company will fire a 62-gun salute at the Tower of London. Flags can then be flown at full mast
Sunday
The public will be able to pass by and pay their respects during a liturgy at St. Giles’, where the queen’s casket will lie for 24 hours.
With fanfares at Cardiff Castle in Wales, the Mercat Cross, a ceremonial monument on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, and Hillsborough Castle in Belfast, Northern Ireland, towns and cities all around the United Kingdom will make their own declarations to the new monarch.
Monday
The queen’s coffin will leave St. Giles’ Cathedral and will travel to London by royal train. The King and his wife will be at Westminster Hall where he will hear messages of condolence.
Tuesday
Senior royals, the prime minister, and other dignitaries will welcome the coffin when it arrives in London’s St. Pancras Station before making its way to Buckingham Palace.
The Victoria Tower Gardens, a tiny green area opposite the Houses of Parliament along the River Thames, will be made available for the hundreds, if not millions, of mourners to pay their respects to Elizabeth as her coffin is brought to Westminster Hall.
Wednesday
A gun carriage procession will take the queen from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster. Queen Elizabeth II’s children and other royal family members will follow on foot. The queen will then move to Westminster Hall, where she will lay for the next 5 days.
Thursday
Leaders from around the world will arrive at Westminster Hall to pay their respects.
Friday
The king meets the Prime Minister at noon for the first official weekly audience.
Saturday
Queen Elizabeth II will be given an official send-off at Westminster Abbey. At 11 a.m. local time, Big Ben will ring once to mark the start of a 2-minute national silence. The coffin will move past Buckingham Palace to Wellington Arch and on to the final resting place at Windsor.
Sources: NBCnews