Queen Elizabeth is dead. How is Charles taking the throne?
- Known as ‘Operation London Bridge’, a carefully choreographed plan will cover the 10 days from the monarch’s death until her funeral
- Elizabeth’s heir has already claimed the official title of Charles III, although he has yet to undergo his coronation ceremony
The closely held procedure, which has been chronicled in part over the years in British newspapers, begins with a call to Britain’s prime minister and ends 10 days later with a state funeral in Westminster Abbey.
It covers everything from how quickly the nation’s flags will be lowered to half mast, to how long her body will lie in state at the Palace of Westminster in Central London.
Her death also marks the end of an era – many Britons have never known another monarch in their lifetime – and ends the reign of Britain’s longest-serving monarch after 70 years on the throne.
Queen Elizabeth ascended to the throne in 1952 at the age of 25, following the death of her father, King George VI. As his oldest daughter, she had been third in line to take the throne, but the abdication of her uncle, King Edward VIII, in 1936 changed her future path.
