Queen Elizabeth: All The Details Of Her Funeral 'Operation London Bridge'

Buckingham Palace has drawn up an intricate plan, called “Operation London Bridge,” for the lying in state and the state funeral for Queen Elizabeth in the next 10 days following her demise. As Britain mourns the 96-year-old monarch’s death, detailed protocols are already in place from succession roles to the entire process of transferring the queen’s coffin from her summer home at Balmoral Castle in Scotland all the way to London.

Operation London Bridge was first drawn and outlined in the 1960s but has been revised over the years.

Buckingham Palace announced Queen Elizabeth’s death on Thursday afternoon at Balmoral where she spent much of her time this summer. Her son Prince Charles now King Charles III was beside her deathbed when she passed away peacefully. In his statement, King Charles expressed great sadness for him and his family for the loss of his mother and that her death would be “deeply felt” across the globe.

"I know her loss will be deeply felt throughout the country, the realms and the Commonwealth, and by countless people around the world,” he said.

What To Expect In the Next 10 Days

Once the Queen’s coffin returns to London, she will lie in state at Westminister Hall for about four days to allow the public to pay their last respects. The grand hall is situated at the heart of the British Parliament and is the oldest part of the Palace of Westminister. The Queen Mother was the last Royal Family member to lie in state in the hall when she died in 2002. Around 200,000 from the general public queued to view and file past her coffin.

Sept 9

Westminister Abbey’s tenor bell and the state bell at St. Paul’s Cathedral, also known as Great Tom, will peal all over London for an hour at noon. Gun salutes are to be fired once every 10 seconds for each year of the Queen’s life at Scotland’s Edinburgh Castle and Hyde Park in London. At Windsor Castle, the Sebastopol bell will be sounded once every minute for every year of the monarch’s life. Flags on all official buildings will fly at half-staff while the Mall will be dressed in black crepe and tassels.

Sept 10

The Queen’s casket will be carried from the Balmoral Castle ballroom accompanied by bearers and the Piper to the Sovereign will lead the coffin as it plays ahead of the hearse. Her coffin will then be moved to Palace of Holyroodhouse where her military guard of honor will welcome her remains.

Sept 11

King Charles and Camilla, the Queen Consort are expected to proceed to Holyroodhouse where they will be met with a 21-gun salute. A procession will be held where the entire Royal Family kin will join in. The procession will commence from Holyroodhouse and lead up to St. Giles’ Cathedral with guns firing every minute throughout the procession. The Queen’s coffin will rest at the cathedral for 24 hours to allow for the public to pay their respects.

Sept 12

The royal train will take the queen’s coffin and travel slowly overnight to London. A traditional send-off for her remains will be in place with a rendition of the national anthem playing as her coffin is boarded on the train.

Sept 13

Senior royals, the prime minister, and other officials will receive the Queen’s coffin at London’s Pancras Station. Her casket will then be transferred to Buckingham Palace by car.

Lying in State

A slow procession from Buckingham Palace will take place to bring the queen’s coffin to Westminister Hall. She will be escorted by a military parade along with members of the Royal Family. As the procession passes through the streets, the public will have access to big screens that will simultaneously broadcast the events all over London’s Royal Parks. A raised platform, also known as a catafalque, will be positioned beneath the hall’s medieval timber roof for the Queen’s coffin to rest on with handpicked soldiers serving the Royal Household guarding each corner of the platform. The queen’s casket will be draped with the Royal Standard and topped with the Imperial State Crown, her scepter, and the orb, BBC reported.

The State Funeral Service

Queen Elizabeth’s state funeral is reportedly scheduled to occur in less than two weeks, but Buckingham Palace has yet to finalize the date. Her remains will be brought to Westminister Abbey on the State Gun Carriage of the Royal Navy for a full monarch funeral service. On record, the last full monarch funeral service held in the Wesminster Abbey was in 1760 for King George II.