Day-by-day guide to Queen Elizabeth’s funeral
The Queen’s coffin is in Balmoral, but soon will embark on its journey to the nation’s capital ahead of her state funeral on Monday 19 September.
People will be given the chance to pay their respects to the Queen, as her body will be placed in the Palace of Holyroodhouse and Westminster Hall for people to see her coffin – a tradition known as lying in state.
King Charles III will also embark on a tour of all four nations that make up the UK.
Here is your guide to what will happen, day by day:
Sunday, September 11
The Queen’s oak coffin, which sits in the ballroom at Balmoral Castle, will be transported by her gamekeepers to a waiting hearse.
Her body will depart Balmoral at around 10:00, proceeding slowly on the six-hour journey to Edinburgh along more than 175 miles (280km) by road.
The coffin will arrive at the Palace of Holyroodhouse – the official residence of the British monarch in the Scottish capital – and lie in the Throne Room.
In London, the King will meet with the Secretary General of the Commonwealth at Buckingham Palace. He will later host in the palace’s Bow Room the High Commissioners from the countries of which he is head of state.
Monday, September 12
King Charles will begin the day with a visit to Westminster Hall, where both Houses of Parliament will meet to express their condolences.
Accompanied by Camilla, the Queen Consort, the King will travel by air to Edinburgh. It is part of Operation Spring Tide, the codename for his first trip around around all four nations of the United Kingdom as king.
In the afternoon, the Queen’s coffin will travel by procession to St Giles’ Cathedral, accompanied by the King and members of the Royal Family.
The Queen’s body will lie in rest at St Giles’ and members of the public will be able to view her coffin, which will remain under continuous vigil for 24 hours.
The King will then return to Holyrood, where he will have an audience with the Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon. He and the Queen Consort will then attend the Scottish Parliament where they will receive a Motion of Condolence.
In the evening, King Charles will hold a Vigil with members of the Royal Family at St Giles’ Cathedral.
Tuesday, September 13
Princess Anne, the Queen’s only daughter, will accompany the Queen’s coffin from St Giles’ Cathedral to Edinburgh airport, and then by plane to RAF Northolt.
The Queen’s final flight from Scotland to London is expected to arrive shortly before 19:00.
From there it will travel to Buckingham Palace, the official residence of British monarchs in London since 1837. The coffin’s arrival at the palace will be witnessed by King Charles III and Camilla, the Queen Consort, before it goes to rest in the Bow Room.
Before that, the King and Camilla will visit to Belfast in Northern Ireland. They will then travel on to Hillsborough Castle to view an exhibition on the Queen’s long association with Northern Ireland.
King Charles will then meet with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Chris Heaton-Harrris MP, as well as other party leaders. He will also receive a message of condolence led by the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly.
After a meeting with religious leaders, King Charles and Camilla will attend a prayer service at St Anne’s Cathedral, and then return to London.
Wednesday, September 14
The Queen’s body will travel in a public procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall shortly after 14:00.
Her coffin will be carried on a gun carriage of the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery, and will be accompanied by a military parade as well as members of the Royal Family.
King Charles will lead the procession behind the carriage, which will be draped in the Royal Standard.
Crowds will be able to watch as it makes the journey along Queen’s Gardens, The Mall, Horse Guards and Horse Guards Arch, Whitehall, Parliament Street, Parliament Square and New Palace Yard.
The journey is expected to last around 40 minutes.
There will also be large television screens set up for the occasion especially in the capital’s Royal Parks.
Once in Westminster Hall, the coffin will rest on a raised platform known as a catafalque and topped with the Imperial State Crown, orb and sceptre.
Each corner of the platform will be guarded 24-hours-a-day by soldiers from units that serve the Royal Household.
The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby will conduct a short service attended by King Charles and other members of the Royal Family, before the Hall is opened to the public.
Thursday, September 15
The day marks the first of four full days that the Queen’s body will lie in state in Westminster Hall, where she will remain until the morning of the state funeral.
The closed coffin will be placed upon a raised platform and the public will be able to file past and pay their respects.
Details will be released later on how people can take part, but it is expected that hundreds of thousands of mourners will be able to pay their respects in the 11th-Century building, the oldest part of the Palace of Westminster and the heart of the British government.
Lying in state is a traditional formality given to the sovereign, the current or past Queen Consort, and sometimes political leaders – although no former prime minister has laid in state since Winston Churchill in 1965.
Friday, September 16
The Queen’s coffin will lie in state for the second full day in Westminster Hall, where people will be able to pay their respects.
The King and Camilla will travel to Wales, marking the final of his visits to all four nations of the United Kingdom as king.
Saturday, September 17
The Queen’s coffin will lie in state for the third full day in Westminster Hall.
Sunday, September 18
The Queen’s coffin will lie in state for the fourth full day in Westminster Hall.
Monday, September 19
During the morning the Queen’s lying in state will end, and the coffin will be taken in procession to Westminster Abbey for the state funeral, which is a Bank Holiday in the UK.
Among the guests that will join members of her family will be senior UK politicians and heads of state from across the world.
Following the funeral, the coffin will travel in procession from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch, from where it will travel to Windsor.
The state hearse will then take the coffin along the Long Walk to St George’s Chapel in Windsor Chapel, where a committal service will take place.(BBC)
