Queen Elizabeth II, the most famous monarch on the planet, died Thursday at the age of 96 at her Scottish castle in Balmoral, with her family by her side. Her son, Prince Charles, automatically succeeds him.
“The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon. The King and Queen consort will remain at Balmoral tonight and will return to London tomorrow,” Buckingham Palace said in a statement, an announcement met with enormous emotion in the UK where Elizabeth II it was very popular
Although the death of Queen Elizabeth II has just been announced, this is what, a priori, should happen in the coming hours and days in the United Kingdom.
• D-Day, Minute of silence and national mourning
Within ten minutes of Elizabeth’s death being announced, flags must be lowered across the country, including in Whitehall, the traditional seat of government in the UK.
Prime Minister Liz Truss will be the first member of the government to make a statement. A minute of national silence will be announced.
The Prime Minister will then have an audience with the new King, and at 6:00 pm (local time), King Charles will deliver a statement to the nation. Following this speech, the country enters a 10-day period of national mourning.
At the same time, a memorial service will be held at St Paul’s Cathedral in central London. The Prime Minister and a small number of chief ministers will be present.
• D-Day, Operation Unicorn
Since the Queen of England died at Balmoral in Scotland, the secret device, called Operation Unicorn, will be launched. This provides, in particular, for the Queen’s remains to be transported from Aberdeen to Edinburgh and then to the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh before joining Saint-Gilles Cathedral.
The queen’s coffin will have to leave Scotland to reach Buckingham Palace.
• D+1, Carlos is proclaimed king
The second day will be mainly dedicated to the ascension of Prince Charles to the title of king. At 10 a.m. (local time), he is to be proclaimed king during a council organized at Saint James’s Palace, however, his coronation will only take place in the following months.
Parliament will meet to agree on a message of condolences and all its meetings will be suspended for 10 days. Charles’s first audience as king with Prime Minister Liz Truss and his cabinet will be at 3:30 p.m. local time.
• D+3, Speech to Parliament and tour of the UK
On the morning of the third day, King Charles will receive the motion of condolences at Westminster Hall and address Parliament at Westminster Hall.
In the afternoon, he will embark on a tour of the UK to attend memorial services for his mother and meet Commonwealth leaders there. She will begin with a visit to the Scottish Parliament and a service at St. Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh.
• D+4, coffin procession rehearsal
At the same time, rehearsals for Operación León, the procession of the coffin from Buckingham to the Palace of Westminster, will take place.
• D+5, procession of Isabel’s coffin
Five days after the monarch’s death, her coffin will be carried from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster during a military procession through the streets of London, to the sound of the bells of Big Ben. Upon arrival a mass will be celebrated in Westminster.
• D+6/7/8, public tribute to Westminster
Elizabeth II’s coffin will then be displayed in the throne room of the Palace of Westminster for three days and the public will be able to come and pay their respects 23 hours a day.
Tickets will be issued to VIPs so they can have a time slot. At the same time there will be a rehearsal of the national funeral procession.
• D+10, state funeral and procession through Windsor
Finally, ten days after the Queen’s death, a state funeral will be held at Westminster Abbey. On this occasion, there will be two minutes of silence throughout the country at noon.
At the end of the ceremony, the remains of the monarch will be transported in the carriage used for the burial of her father, George VI, in 1952. A final trip to her burial at Windsor Castle, together with Prince Philip, with whom she will rest for eternity.
Source: BFM TV
