The death of Queen Elizabeth II marks the end of an era. Her death sets in motion an extremely coordinated, structured and choreographed plan which is called Operation London Bridge. It is named after the code word provided to the Queen herself and was used to convey the news of her sad demise to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the words “London Bridge is Down”. The royal family gathered in Balmoral Castle when the queen was unwell.
For the next ten days, an extensive procedure planned down to the last minute will fall into place. According to Philip Murphy, a professor of British and Commonwealth history teaching in the University of London, this planning process had started from the moment the Queen Elizabeth became the monarch of the United Kingdom.
Here is the plan of action after the Queen Elizabeth’s death:
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- Foremostly Prince Charles III became the king of the UK even before the news of the Queen’s demise was announced.
- The National anthem of the United Kingdom will be changed back to “God Save the King” from the current one which was “God Save the Queen”.
- The foreign office will relay the message of the queen’s demise to the commonwealth leaders which includes 15 countries where the Queen Elizabeth was the monarch. Upon her death, King Charles automatically became the head of the state of all the realms that were once ruled by his mother.
- The flags were lowered to half-staff and a notice was stuck on all the gates of the Queen’s residence, including the Buckingham palace and Balmoral castle.
- The country has officially entered an official period of mourning for the next 10 days when the queen’s casket will be buried alongside Prince Philip’s, her husband who died in April 2021.
- The lawmakers and politicians will take an oath of allegiance and pledge their support to the new monarch, King Charles.
- The accession council will be summoned to St. James’s Palace and the first council of King Charles’s reign will be held over there.
- King Charles will make oaths to the Church of Scotland, an accession declaration oath and a vow to uphold the protestant line of succession with truth and honour. At the end, he will make the Coronation Oath where he will promise to uphold the rights of the Church of England.
- The day after the Queen’s death, a notice will be released that officially announced the reign of the new king, King Charles III.
- Two days after the queen’s death, her casket will be brought back to London, Buckingham palace either through the royal train which is called Operation Unicorn or through Operation Overstudy where she will be flown back into London.
- From the third day, King Charles will travel through the United Kingdom to meet the leaders.
- On day 4, a rehearsal called Operation Lion will take place to practice the procession of the Royal casket from Birmingham to Westminster.
- From day 5 to day 9, the casket will arrive at Westminster and will be open to the public to offer their condolences.
- On day 10, two minutes of silence will be observed throughout the UK and the queen’s casket will be buried next to Prince Charles’s at the King George VI Memorial Chapel.
- The day when the queen is buried will be declared as a national holiday.
Feedhour offers a detailed overview of every detail related to Queen Elizabeth, her life, her achievements and her funeral plan.