Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II

"Death and funeral of Queen Elizabeth" redirects here. For the death and funeral of Elizabeth II's mother, see Death and funeral of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother.

Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II

The roadsides and bus stops of London with notices about Queen Elizabeth - mostly digital billboards but one chalkboard too (52345186772) Top to bottom, left to right: (1) Crowds at Buckingham Palace following the death of Elizabeth II. (2) Floral tributes left by people who could not access the Palace. (3) Mourners at The Mall, London. (4) A view of Buckingham Palace from The Mall. (5) JCDecaux advertising display in London commemorating the Queen; digital advertisements were suspended following the announcement.
Date	8 September 2022 (2022-09-08) (date of death) 19 September 2022 (2022-09-19) (date of state funeral)
Location	Balmoral Castle, Scotland (death) Westminster Abbey, London (funeral) King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle (burial)
Coordinates	57°2′27″N 3°13′48″W

On 8 September 2022, Elizabeth II, the Queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, the longest-living and longest-reigning British monarch, died at the age of 96 at Balmoral Castle in Scotland. Upon the Queen's death, Charles, her eldest son, immediately became King of the United Kingdom and fourteen other Commonwealth realms. The official announcement of her death was made at 18:30 BST.

Her death set in motion Operation London Bridge, a collection of plans including arrangements for her funeral, and Operation Unicorn, which set protocols for the Queen's death in Scotland. The United Kingdom is observing a national mourning period of 10 days. The state funeral service for Elizabeth II is due to be held at Westminster Abbey on 19 September 2022, at 11:00.

Elizabeth II's death was met by reactions from leaders and organisations around the world.

Background

The Queen had been in good health for most of her life. Throughout 2021 and 2022, the Queen faced several health issues. In October 2021, British media reported that the Queen had begun using a walking stick during public engagements. The Queen stayed overnight in hospital on 20 October, resulting in visits to Northern Ireland and her visit to the COP26 summit in Glasgow being cancelled on health grounds. In November, the Queen suffered from a sprained back and was unable to attend the 2021 National Service of Remembrance.

In February 2022, during the COVID-19 pandemic in England, the Queen was one of several people at Windsor Castle to test positive for COVID-19. Her symptoms were described as mild and cold-like, with the Queen later commenting that the disease "does leave one very tired and exhausted". Given the health impacts of COVID-19 and long COVID are known to be more severe among older people, the Queen's health came into question by multiple outlets. However, the Queen was reportedly feeling well enough to resume her official duties by 1 March. The Queen was present at the service of thanksgiving for Prince Philip at Westminster Abbey on 29 March, but was unable to attend the annual Commonwealth Day service that month or the Royal Maundy Service in April. In May, the Queen missed the State Opening of Parliament for the first time in 59 years (she did not attend in 1959 and 1963 as she was pregnant with Prince Andrew, Duke of York, and Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, respectively). In her absence, Parliament was opened by the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge as Counsellors of State. The Prince of Wales, the heir apparent, gained more official responsibilities towards the end of the Queen's life and stood in for her at the State Opening of Parliament. In June, the Queen did not attend the National Service of Thanksgiving for her Platinum Jubilee; official sources mentioned her "discomfort" after standing during the military parade celebrating her official birthday on the first day of celebrations. During the celebrations, the Queen was largely confined to balcony appearances.

On 6 September, two days before her death, the Queen accepted the resignation of Boris Johnson and appointed Liz Truss to succeed him as Prime Minister at Balmoral Castle (where the Queen was on holiday) in a break with tradition; this was usually done at Buckingham Palace. On 7 September, she was scheduled to attend an online meeting of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom to swear in new ministers in Truss's government, but it was announced that the meeting had been cancelled after she was advised to rest by doctors. The Queen's final public statement, issued that same day, was a message of condolences for the victims of the 2022 Saskatchewan stabbings.

Timeline

See also: Timeline of the death and state funeral of Elizabeth II

8 September

Balmoral Castle (pictured in 2004), where the Queen died

At 06:50 BST, the Queen's helicopter left Windsor Castle for Scotland in order to transport Prince Charles from Dumfries House to Balmoral Castle. At 10:30, Prince Charles arrived at the castle. Princess Anne was already staying at Balmoral and met him there. Prime Minister Liz Truss was informed sometime in the morning by Cabinet secretary Simon Case that the Queen was gravely ill.

At 12:00, Prime Minister Truss was updated on and Deputy Leader of the Opposition Angela Rayner informed of the Queen's ill health by notes circulated during a speech in Parliament by Leader of the Opposition Keir Starmer. Within the hour, at 12:30, Buckingham Palace publicly announced that the Queen was "under medical supervision" at Balmoral Castle after doctors expressed concern over her health. The statement read:

Following further evaluation this morning, the Queen's doctors are concerned for Her Majesty's health and have recommended she remain under medical supervision. The Queen remains comfortable and at Balmoral.

Speaker of the House of Commons Lindsay Hoyle made a brief statement of good wishes in Parliament in response.

News quickly spread to the households of members of the royal family. Prince William, Prince Andrew, Prince Edward and his wife the Countess of Wessex, and Prince Harry, announced they were travelling to Balmoral, while the Duchess of Cambridge and the Duchess of Sussex stayed in London. At 12:40, the BBC, the national broadcaster of the United Kingdom, cut away from regular programming on BBC One to continuously cover the Queen's condition, with all BBC news journalists and broadcasters dressed in black later in the afternoon. Special reports about her condition were run on other main television channels in the UK, including ITV, Channel 4, and Channel 5. At 14:30, Prince William, Prince Andrew, Prince Edward and Sophie, Countess of Wessex's flight left RAF Northolt for Aberdeen Airport.

By 16:30, the Queen had died. Simon Case informed the Prime Minister of the Queen's death at around this time. Thirty minutes later, Prince William, Prince Andrew, Prince Edward and Sophie, Countess of Wessex arrived at Balmoral. The Queen's death was publicly announced two hours later, at 18:30. The royal family announced her death on Twitter with the following statement:

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.

British television announcements of the Queen's death came shortly after, and included the aforementioned statement being read verbatim by news presenter Huw Edwards during a live broadcast across all BBC television channels (bar BBC Three and Four, which were not broadcasting at the time, and subsequently had programmes suspended following the announcement of the death; and children's channels CBBC, which announced the news through their programme Newsround, and CBeebies, which saw no interruptions to its regular schedule), after which the national anthem was played.

In accordance with the protocol implemented after the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, the Union flag at Buckingham Palace was lowered to half-mast. It also flew at half-mast at 10 Downing Street and Balmoral Castle. Since the new monarch was already at Balmoral Castle when he became King, the Royal Standard of the United Kingdom was lowered and raised again at the castle. The Royal Banner of Scotland was lowered to half-mast at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, and the Welsh flag at Cardiff Castle was also lowered. Huge crowds gathered outside royal residences to mourn the Queen and rainbows were seen above Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle.

At 20:00, Prince Harry, who had travelled alone and departed later than the other family members, arrived at Balmoral.

9 September

King Charles III and Queen Camilla travelled from Balmoral to Buckingham Palace, where they greeted the crowd of mourners outside the gates. The King then held an in-person audience with Prime Minister Truss before paying tribute to his mother in a publicly broadcast message. At the Palace of Westminster, MPs gathered to read out their messages of condolences and tributes.

In Charles's first address as King, he declared a period of mourning that is expected to last and be observed by the royal family and members of the royal household until seven days after the Queen's state funeral on 19 September. All flags at royal residences were ordered to be lowered to half-mast except for the Royal Standard which, in accordance with both long-standing protocol and the deceased Queen's wishes, will continue to fly at full mast whenever the King is in any of the residences. All royal residences will be closed until after the state funeral has occurred. 96-gun salutes were fired in Hyde Park by the King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery, at the Tower of London by the Honourable Artillery Company, at Edinburgh Castle by the Royal Artillery, at Cardiff Castle and Stonehenge by 104 Regiment, Royal Artillery, at Caernarfon Castle, at York Museum Gardens, and on board Royal Navy ships. An online book of condolences was also set up by the royal website. Church bells tolled at Westminster Abbey, St Paul's Cathedral, and other churches across the UK. At Windsor Castle, the Sebastopol Bell, which is only rung to mark the deaths of senior royals, tolled 96 times, once a minute from 12:00 until 13:35, marking the 96 years of the Queen's life. The UK government published guidance on details surrounding the national mourning period, stating that businesses, public service, sports fixtures and public venues were not obliged to shut.

At St Paul's Cathedral, a ticketed service of prayer and mourning was held at 18:00 with senior politicians and 2,000 members of the public in attendance. The ceremony marked the first official rendition of "God Save the King" under Charles's reign. The Prime Minister gave a reading and the Bishop of London gave an address, while the Archbishop of Canterbury said the blessings. Solemn Prelude "In Memoriam" from For the Fallen by Edward Elgar was played as the service was about to start and the hymns "All My Hope on God is Founded" and "O Thou Who Camest from Above" were chosen for the event.

10 September

At 11:00, 21-gun salutes at the Tower of London, Cardiff Castle, Edinburgh Castle, Castle Cornet, Gibraltar, and naval bases and stations at sea marked the proclamation of accession of Charles III. After the proclamation ceremony, the King greeted crowds outside Buckingham Palace. Major roads in Edinburgh were closed in preparation for the Queen's coffin travelling from Balmoral to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, after which the coffin will be moved to St Giles' Cathedral for the public to view and pay their respects. The City of Edinburgh Council has been responsible for organising the event, in collaboration with the Scottish Government and Police Scotland. The Queen's three younger children, Princess Anne and her husband Sir Timothy Laurence, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward and his wife the Countess of Wessex, along with five of her grandchildren Peter Phillips, Zara Tindall, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie and Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor, attended a service at Crathie Kirk and viewed floral tributes outside Balmoral. The King's sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, along with their wives, the Princess of Wales and the Duchess of Sussex, viewed floral tributes outside Windsor Castle.

Senior MPs, including Prime Minister Liz Truss, swore an Oath of Allegiance to Charles III in a special session of Parliament. Buckingham Palace announced that Elizabeth's state funeral would be held on 19 September. The UK Government subsequently announced the day would be a national bank holiday. The King and the Queen Consort held an audience with the Archbishop of Canterbury at Buckingham Palace. The King then met with the Prime Minister for a second time and held audiences with members of her cabinet. He also met with leaders of the opposition parties.

11 September

On 11 September at 10:00, the Queen's body will be moved from the ballroom at Balmoral Castle to the Throne Room in the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh, where it will stay until the afternoon of 12 September. The procession is expected to last six hours as the coffin makes its way through Aberdeen, Angus, Dundee, Perth and Fife before reaching Edinburgh, going past buildings and places that had a personal connection to her.

The King is expected to meet the Commonwealth Secretary General at Buckingham Palace, and then host Realm High Commissioners and their spouses in the Bow Room at Buckingham Palace.

BBC One is also expected to begin a return to normal programming, having dedicated its schedule to constant rolling news coverage since the death of the Queen.

12 September

The King and the Queen Consort will travel to Westminster Hall to receive condolences from Parliament. They will travel to Edinburgh by air. At the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the King will inspect the Guard of Honour and the Ceremony of the Keys will follow. The King will then attend a service of prayer and reflection at St Giles' Cathedral, before returning to Holyrood, where he will have an audience with Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, and the Presiding Officer. The King and the Queen Consort will visit the Scottish Parliament to receive a Motion of Condolence. A procession will carry the Queen's body to St Giles' Cathedral. The King and the royal family take part in the procession and attend a service at St Giles' Cathedral to receive the coffin. In the evening the King will hold a Vigil with members of the royal family at the cathedral, where the Queen's coffin will remain for a total of 24 hours. The coffin will be guarded by Vigils from the Royal Company of Archers, to allow the people of Scotland to pay their respects for a day.

13 September

The King and the Queen Consort will travel to Belfast and then visit Hillsborough Castle. They will view an exhibition that will highlight the Queen's association with Northern Ireland. The King will then meet the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and party leaders, and the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly will deliver a message of condolence. After a short reception at Hillsborough, the King and the Queen Consort will travel to St Anne's Cathedral before leaving Belfast for London.

The Queen's coffin, draped in the Royal Standard and with the Imperial State Crown on top, will then be taken from Edinburgh Airport to RAF Northolt, accompanied by Princess Anne. From there, it will be transferred to the Bow Room at Buckingham Palace in the presence of the King and the Queen Consort.

14–18 September

On 14 September, the Queen's coffin, borne on a gun carriage of the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery will be taken from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall in a military procession. The procession will take the coffin through the Queen's Gardens, The Mall, Horse Guards Parade and Horse Guards Arch, Whitehall, Parliament Street, Parliament Square and New Palace Yard. After the coffin arrives, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Dean of Westminster will conduct a short service in the presence of the King and members of the royal family. The Queen will lie in state for four days at Westminster Hall until the morning of the funeral. Throughout this time, crowds can file past, and in addition to the Imperial State Crown, the orb and sceptre will be placed on the coffin.

On 16 September, the King and the Queen Consort will visit Wales, concluding their tour of the UK's four nations.

Process

Further information: Operation London Bridge

Plans for the Queen's death have existed in some form since the 1960s.

Succession

Main article: Proclamation of accession of Charles III

Upon the Queen's death, her eldest son Charles, Prince of Wales, immediately acceded to the throne as King of the United Kingdom as Charles III.

There was some speculation regarding what regnal name the former Prince of Wales would take upon succeeding his mother. During her formal televised address outside 10 Downing Street, Prime Minister Truss made the first mention of the King's regnal name during a tribute to the Queen. Clarence House officially confirmed the new King would be known as Charles III shortly after the Prime Minister's address. Buckingham Palace released the King's first official statement as monarch at 19:04:

The death of my beloved Mother, Her Majesty The Queen, is a moment of the greatest sadness for me and all members of my family.

We mourn profoundly the passing of a cherished Sovereign and a much-loved Mother. I know her loss will be deeply felt throughout the country, the Realms and the Commonwealth, and by countless people around the world.

During this period of mourning and change, my family and I will be comforted and sustained by our knowledge of the respect and deep affection in which The Queen was so widely held.

Most of Charles III's pre-accession Scottish titles, as well as the title Duke of Cornwall, were passed to his eldest son and the new heir apparent to the throne, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge. On 9 September, William was created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester, succeeding his now-reigning father.

The Accession Council assembled on 10 September at St James's Palace to formally proclaim the accession of Charles III. Although about seven hundred people were eligible to attend the ceremony, because the event was planned on such short notice, the number in attendance was two hundred. In addition to other formalities, the Council de jure confirmed Charles III as the King's regnal name.

No dates have been announced for the King and Queen Consort's coronation or for the new Prince of Wales's investiture.

State funeral

The state funeral is set to be held at Westminster Abbey at 11:00 BST on 19 September 2022.

On the day of the funeral, the coffin will be moved from Westminster Hall to Westminster Abbey on the State Gun Carriage of the Royal Navy as the King and other members of the royal family walk behind. The royal family, heads of state, and politicians will gather at Westminster Abbey for the funeral. The Dean of Westminster David Hoyle is expected to conduct the service, and the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby will deliver the sermon. The coffin will then be taken from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch and then by hearse to Windsor.

Another procession is expected to occur at the Quadrangle in Windsor Castle, at the end of which the coffin will be taken to St George's Chapel for a committal service. The coffin will then be lowered to the Royal Vault. The Queen is expected to be buried at the King George VI Memorial Chapel and laid to rest next to her husband, parents, and sister.

Reactions

Main article: Reactions to the death of Elizabeth II

Royal family

Notice of the Queen's death posted at Holyrood Palace, Edinburgh

King Charles III paid tribute to his mother in a speech the following morning:

To my darling Mama, as you begin your last great journey to join my dear late Papa, I want simply to say this: thank you. Thank you for your love and devotion to our family and to the family of nations you have served so diligently all these years. May flights of Angels sing thee to thy rest.

The King, along with Princess Anne and Prince Edward, paid tribute to their mother in the BBC One special programme A Tribute to Her Majesty The Queen. On 10 September, Prince William issued a statement, paying tribute to his grandmother whom he described as an "extraordinary Queen".

Other responses

Hundreds of people had gathered outside the gates of Buckingham Palace in the rain in London.

Hundreds of people had gathered outside the gates of Buckingham Palace in London at the time of the announcement. Many others used social media to post condolences and tributes both to the Queen and to the British royal family. Floral tributes were later left outside Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Sandringham House, Balmoral Castle, the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Hillsborough Castle, and Highgrove House. Several black cab drivers lined The Mall with their lights on to pay tribute to the Queen. Numerous books of condolences were set up at libraries and council offices across the UK.

The London Eye dimmed its lights on the evening of her death. Flags at Parliament Hill in Ottawa and the Capitol Building and the White House in Washington, D.C. were flown at half-mast in her honour. The Empire State Building in New York City illuminated in purple and silver, the Eiffel Tower in Paris went dark at midnight, and the Sydney Opera House had an image of the Queen projected onto it. Billboards at Piccadilly Circus, the BT Tower and Times Square showed tributes to the Queen, as well as advertising screens on the side of bus stops across London. Many other landmarks across the world paid tributes to the death of Elizabeth II.

Google muted its homepage with a grey version of the normally colourful company logo. The National Memorial Arboretum set up books of condolence and announced tributes would be paid to the Queen at a special reading at Millennium Chapel. Blackpool Illuminations were unlit as a sign of respect, and they will become unlit again on the night of the funeral. Blackpool Tower is displaying the colours red, white and blue throughout the period of mourning. St Laurence's Church in Ludlow and Shrewsbury Abbey are due to hold memorial services.

The ceremony that was due to be held to mark the transitioning of Colchester from town to city status was cancelled. The Last Night of the Proms and the Mercury Prize were among the events that were called off, while the Royal Opera House announced that they would not go on with the opening night of one of their new productions and will not be operating on the day of the state funeral. Several unions responsible for organising the strikes by postal workers and rail staff announced that they would postpone their actions "out of respect for her service to the country and her family". The Trades Union Congress also cancelled their annual conference as a sign of respect. Jersey Heritage opened Gorey Castle to the public for the weekend, and Jersey Pride and Channel Islands Pride were scaled back following the Queen's death.

Numerous sporting events have been postponed or suspended from 8 September until at least 11 September, including all football fixtures across the Home Nations, and the second day of England's third test match against South Africa. Some events have gone on, but with a moment of silence observed before play, and all players wearing black armbands. Several rugby fixtures were postponed, with the exception of mini, junior and under-18 rugby matches, which will go ahead with a period of two minutes' silence. The St Leger Stakes, the Champagne Stakes and the Park Stakes, the Doncaster Cup and the Flying Childers Stakes were all postponed.

Various political leaders and heads of state and government, as well as members of royalty, sent messages of condolence.

External links

• Announcement of the death of The Queen – The Royal Household
• Arrangements for the Funeral of Her Majesty The Queen – The Royal Household
• Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II – UK Government
• Commemoration for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II – Government of Canada
• Her Majesty The Queen – Australian Government
• Death of Her Majesty the Queen – Governor-General of New Zealand