Following the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II a strict protocol of what happens next will now be followed.
The news of her death was announced in a statement on behalf of the Royal Family.
The statement read: “The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon.
"The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow.”
As is the case whenever a member of the Royal Family dies there are strict plans in place for what happens next, none more important than the death of the Head of State.
Each member of the Royal Family has their own code name, detailing the plans in place in the event of their death.
What is Operation London Bridge?
Today would traditionally have been D-Day or D+0 in the plans for the aftermath of the Queen’s death, codenamed London Bridge.
But the announcement has come late in the day – at 6.31pm on Thursday September 8 – meaning plans have been shifted a day to allow the complex arrangements to be put in place, meaning D+0 will be considered Friday.
UK government departments will be told to have flags at half-mast within 10 minutes after government officials are told and instructed to show “discretion”.
Prince Charles will become King when his mother passes and will address the nation of his mother’s death.
The prime minister will be the first government official to release an official statement.
The Queen will be buried around 11 days after her death with Prince Charles expected to embark on a UK tour in the days leading to the burial.
According to Politico, parliamentary business will be suspended for 10 days and the sovereign’s coffin will lie in state for three days at the Houses of Parliament.
The Royal household will issue an official statement notifying the nation of the monarch’s passing.
What is Operation Unicorn?
The death of the Queen in Scotland has also triggered contingency plans known as Operation Unicorn.
Part of the long-held so-called London Bridge arrangements for the aftermath of Elizabeth’s death, Unicorn sets in motion additional ceremonial events in Edinburgh ahead of the logistics of moving the Queen’s coffin back to London.
The Earl Marshal who is in charge of the plans will, along with royal aides and the Government, be rapidly adjusting the overarching timetable to incorporate the Scottish element, as the military, clergy and police turn their attention to the immense practicalities.
The royal family has already made the urgent dash to Balmoral, with Charles – the new king – and the Queen’s other children the Princess Royal, the Duke of York and the Earl of Wessex at the monarch’s bedside.
Members of the royal family will be expected in the coming days to hold a poignant vigil around the Queen’s coffin in St Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh.
Initially, the Queen’s coffin is expected to be at rest in the Ballroom at Balmoral Castle – her private home in Aberdeenshire in the Scottish Highlands.
In around two days’ time, the Queen’s coffin is expected to be driven by car from Balmoral to Edinburgh.
The long, slow journey will take more than five hours as it passes through a myriad of towns and villages, watched by mourners gathered along the route.
The coffin will then rest overnight in the oak-panelled Throne Room at the Palace of Holyroodhouse – the Queen’s official residence in the Scottish capital.
The next day - in around three days’ time - it is expected to be taken in a procession along the Royal Mile in the heart of Edinburgh’s old town to historic St Giles’ Cathedral, where it will remain at rest for 24 hours.
Members of the royal family are expected to process behind the hearse.
A service will be held in St Giles’ and the Queen’s children are expected to stage a vigil around the Queen’s coffin – known as the Vigil of the Princes – while it lies in the cathedral.
Members of the public are expected to be allowed in to file past the Queen’s coffin to pay their respects.
The next day - as part of Operation Overstudy - the Queen’s coffin will be flown to London by the RAF on a military aircraft, ahead of preparation for a lying in state.
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