One of the darkest figures in world politics - Queen Elizabeth 2 of England - has probably died. This news was posted in official sources of Buckingham Palace.
and was quickly removed from the official website.
What really happened in the royal family?
The publication of the extraordinary press release and then its rapid removal from the royal family's website has led many to conclude that Queen Elizabeth is dead.
A press release briefly appeared on the official Royal Family website stating that Queen Elizabeth died in her sleep yesterday morning before it was removed, with internet users taking screenshots of the statement and evidence that the press release appeared on Google.
An official statement released by the Queen's press secretary at the request of Prince Charles said Queen Elizabeth II died in her sleep at Sandringham after her health became "increasingly deteriorating in recent weeks due to a severe cough and chest infection."
However, the reason for the removal of this press release is unclear and mysterious.
Royal's website Royal is not responding to requests for clarification as to why they removed the statement.
The press release went into detail about the Queen's death, suggesting that it was not a blanket backup article published by accident.
According to the Sunday Times, preparations are underway in Britain for the coronation of Prince Charles of Wales.
The Duke plans to modernize the ceremony. According to him, the coronation of Prince Charles will be different from the coronation of his mother Queen Elizabeth. In particular, leaders of almost all major religious denominations existing at a given time will be invited to the ceremony.
Preparations for Charles's coronation have been going on for several years, and changes and adjustments have been made and are being made along the way. Consultations are ongoing on possible amendments or changes to the coronation ceremony.
The press secretariat of the Prince of Wales did not go into detail about this information, limiting itself to the statement “there is contingency planning.”
There is also speculation that the delay in announcing the news is due to a power struggle at the heart of the royal family. Prince Charles is currently fighting for the throne with William. William knows secrets about his father that the royal family doesn't want to voice, and William believes that this will help him jump over his father and be crowned king in 2017.
This situation may explain the sudden publication - and then deletion - of a death notice.
The Queen's death was announced on the BBC's Twitter account.
However, a little later, journalists established that the Twitter account is not an official BBC channel; in fact, the queen is alive. But there is no information about her health at the moment.
So? Long live the king...?
Queen Elizabeth II on her 85th birthday (photo: TT)
No matter how sad it may sound, Her Majesty Elizabeth II, by the Grace of God of Great Britain, Ireland and the British Overseas Dominions, Queen, Defender of the Faith, cannot live forever.
Since her accession to the throne in 1952, Queen Elizabeth II has seen 12 British prime ministers and outlived 12 US presidents. She is now 88 years old. At some point, hopefully not soon, the reign of Queen Elizabeth II will come to an end.
But what happens next?
For at least 12 days (deaths, funerals and memorials) Britain will come to a standstill. This will cost the state billions of dollars in economic losses. Stock markets and banks will close indefinitely.
The funeral and subsequent coronation of the first heir will be officially declared a holiday, each of which will be a powerful blow to the UK's GDP, not to mention organizational costs.
The grief that gripped the people of Britain in 1997 was dubbed by journalists “Princess Diana syndrome” (photo: telegraph.co.uk) National mourning for the Queen will be a shock the likes of which Britain has never seen in 70 years. There will be both trivial events (the BBC canceling all comedy shows, for example) and events of cultural significance (Prince Charles will be able to change his name, and the text of the national anthem will be amended).
The death of the Queen Mother and the death of Princess Diana at one time caused waves of public hysteria. But the death of the first person in British society for many decades will be a real tsunami.
The vast majority of Britons simply cannot imagine their lives without Queen Elizabeth II.
It will be a strange, hazy period of time.
The first hours after the queen's death
Buckingham Castle (photo: travellingandfood.com) Much depends on the cause of the queen's death. If they are predictable (long-term illness, for example), then a detailed action plan and official statement will be prepared in advance. But if it happens unexpectedly, as in the case of Princess Diana, then events can easily spin out of control.
In any case, the majority of staff at Buckingham Palace and associated institutions will be sent home immediately. The Royal Court has a list of guidelines for workers in this case.
News of the Queen's death is expected to be disseminated through major British television channels. All BBC feeds will now show one live broadcast. Independent television channels will not be required to interrupt their regular broadcasting, but will most likely do so.
The BBC was forced to draw conclusions after it was caught off guard by the news of the Queen Mother's death in 2002. Presenter Peter Sissons was subsequently heavily criticized as he delivered the news while wearing a red tie. Since then, the Air Force wardrobe has always had black ties and suits, ready to be worn at any time.
BBC presenters regularly undergo “training sessions” in which they are suddenly asked to make harsh statements that are patently false. These recordings, of course, are not broadcast anywhere.
BBC historical video: news of the death of the Queen Mother, 2002
All entertainment programs will be cancelled.
The last death of a British monarch occurred in 1952. The BBC has suspended all entertainment programming during the mourning period and is prepared to do the same at any time.
CNN already has a series of documentary programs about the life of the Queen, ready to immediately go on air especially on the occasion of mourning.
If the Queen's death were announced during business hours, the London Stock Exchange would likely close immediately.
The funeral news will have to be announced by the Department of Culture (although it is also possible that it will come directly from Buckingham Palace). The international reaction and outpouring of condolences are still difficult to predict.
Whatever happens formally, on the day of the death of Queen Elizabeth II, the whole of Great Britain will be in shock and will actually cease to function as a state.
The Brief Resurrection of the British Empire
Great Britain flag at half mast. Buckingham Palace, death of Margaret Thatcher, 2013 (photo: stuff.co.nz) Given the Queen's international position, the news of the royal death will certainly become number one news around the world. Great Britain has its representations in every corner of the globe, and not only through consulates, but also thanks to former colonies and Commonwealth countries, which informally but swear allegiance to the British crown. The British Empire once covered a quarter of the earth's landmass, and the death of the Queen will mark a brief, surreal period in which the British can once again feel part of the empire thanks to the attention of absolutely all of their former subjects.
Of course, all British consulates will lower the national flag and cancel the reception of citizens. Officials will dress and behave according to procedures during the period of national mourning. Visitors will be able to leave their words of condolences in special books.
But there is still a lot of uncertainty about what will actually happen. In the 60 years since the last death of the British monarch, society has changed dramatically.
Behind closed doors in the palace
Chapel Royal at St James's Palace (photo: dailymail.co.uk) Once the majority of Buckingham Palace staff have gone home and local tourist attractions have closed to the public, the Accession Council will meet at St James's Palace to announce, barring unforeseen circumstances, the Queen's successor, Prince Charles. The meeting will be attended by members of the Privy Council, the Lords, the Mayor of London and the High Commissioners of several Commonwealth countries.
At the council, the new monarch (presumably Charles) will take the oath of allegiance to Parliament and the Church of England. He will also become the new Supreme Governor of the Church (Catholics cannot ascend to the throne). At the end of the oath, the council will make a "Proclamation of Accession", after which Britain will officially have a new monarch.
Prince Charles may change his name
Charles, Prince of Wales (photo: onenewspage.com) It is also worth paying attention to the possibility of Prince Charles renouncing the crown in favor of his son, Prince William, by changing his own name, which has been repeatedly discussed in the media.
Such a bold, but thoughtless, step could well lead to a constitutional crisis in Great Britain. But most likely this will not happen. And Prince William himself has repeatedly stated that it is unacceptable to transfer the crown in this way. William will simply become the new Prince of Wales (his father's current title).
Prince Charles will not necessarily become "King Charles". Upon ascending the throne, members of the royal family can choose a "throne name" from any of their Christian middle names. Thus, Prince Charles Philip Arthur George may take the name "King Philip", "King Arthur" or "King George".
Farewell to the Queen
Farewell to the Queen Mother, 2001 (photo: zimbio.com) While discussions continue, the queen's coffin will be prepared for public access so that those who wish can pay their respects.
The late Queen will lie in state in Westminster Hall. Upon arrival of the coffin, a short ceremony will take place, after which the public will be able to bid farewell to the Queen and pay their respects to her. Access to the farewell hall will be open for only one hour per day.
While the Queen Mother's coffin lay in state at Westmister Hall, her grandchildren stood guard over the coffin for some time. This ritual is called the “Vigil of the Princes.” Something similar happened during the farewell to King George V. Although the “Vigil of the Princes” is not an official part of the ceremony, it will rather be included in the farewell program for Queen Elizabeth II.
Prince Charles at the funeral of his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, 2002 (photo: telegraph.co.uk) More than 200 thousand members of the public paid tribute to the Queen Mother with their presence. The scale of mourning for Elizabeth II will easily overshadow these figures.
The period of farewell to the Queen will be a massive, hysterical outpouring of grief. It will not be a somber minute of silence - it will be a blow to the psyche of the nation. When Princess Diana died, hundreds of thousands of people came to Buckingham Palace to lay flowers. According to some estimates, the number of bouquets exceeded a million.
There will be at least 20 million entries in condolence books. The queues for them will stretch for hours and kilometers. On the streets you will see people losing touch with reality. Shop owners will be forced to close their premises to avoid incurring the wrath of the mourning crowd.
Queen's funeral
Princess Diana's coffin (photo: Daily Mail) The body of Elizabeth II will lie in state in Westminster Hall until the day of the funeral. The Daily Mail believes they will take place 12 days after the Queen's death.
This will probably be the largest funeral of all time. Most world leaders will honor the Queen's memory with their presence.
On the day of Princess Diana's funeral, more than a million people lined the funeral procession and 30 million Britons watched the burial ceremony on television. The worldwide audience numbered 2.5 billion viewers.
The ceremony in Westminster Abbey will be led by Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, the second most senior figure in the Church of England after the monarch.
Television audience of mourning ceremonies
Queen's final resting place
If Elizabeth II has already decided on her resting place, then it is either the Sandrigham estate or Balmoral Castle in Scotland. These two places are notable because they belong to the queen personally, and not to the palace.
The queen is at rest, a new king is on the throne. This is all? Of course not
2015 Queen Elizabeth II coin (photo: gmanetwork.com) In the days, weeks and months following the funeral, a lot of changes will occur in the country.
New coins will begin to be minted immediately, for which the British Mint already has the appropriate blanks with a portrait of Charles. Of course, it will not be possible to replace the entire currency reserve overnight, but this will certainly happen within a few years.
The British national anthem, "God Save the Queen," will be replaced by "God Save the King."
A new inscription will appear on police helmets. Currently they contain the Queen's initials. In addition, updating of military symbols will be required.
British police helmets will receive new royal symbols (photo: telegraph.co.uk) All Britons will have to change their passport because it contains lines mentioning Her Majesty.
Postage stamps featuring the Queen's image will be retired.
These changes actually mean more than meets the eye. When Elizabeth II was crowned, her throne number - II - caused discontent among the Scots, since Scotland had never been ruled by Elizabeth I.
Once the traces of Elizabeth II's reign are gradually erased, the queen will be immortalized in monuments. The fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square is currently home to temporary statues and works of art, but former London mayor Ken Livingstone has repeatedly said that the plinth is reserved for Queen Elizabeth II.
How will it all end for the Commonwealth?
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott is a staunch monarchist (photo: 2gb.com) The Queen's death will undoubtedly have much deeper consequences than new postage stamps. However, it is quite possible that it will spell the end for the Commonwealth as we now know it.
The Commonwealth is an organization of 53 countries where the British monarch is the official head of state, including Australia, Canada, Jamaica, New Zealand, and Barbados. These are the remnants of the British Empire, which in the modern world remains in the form of trade and political relations between the former British colonies. Many of these countries became part of the British Empire against their will and almost all of them declared their independence long ago.
The death of Elizabeth II may become a reason for some Commonwealth countries to end their alliance with England once and for all.
Another supporter of the monarchy, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper (photo: citynews.ca) Australia, for example, held a referendum on the republican status of the state in 1999. Ultimately, Republicans won 45% of the vote. Australians' support for the monarchy may stem from a personal attachment to the Queen herself, but if the object of their adoration is no longer there, a decision to part ways could easily arise.
The withdrawal of the Commonwealth countries from the alliance with England also largely depends on the time period of the queen's death. Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper are staunch monarchists and do their best to suppress any manifestations of republicanism before their eyes. But if the Queen leaves this world after the aforementioned prime ministers leave their seats, the resurgent republicans may find a more receptive audience.
Republican UK?
Depending on Charles's style of government, republicans may also become more active in Britain. But there is still no chance that Great Britain will become a republic in the foreseeable future. Support for the monarch is deeply rooted in the psyche of the people: 66% of respondents see their state as a monarchy, and only 17% choose a republic.
Long time to live!
On September 9, 2015, Queen Elizabeth II will break the record set by her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria: she will become the longest-living British monarch of all time!
Queen Elizabeth II is the oldest living monarch in the world (photo: Wikimedia) (Bird in Flight publishes a fragmentary retelling of the article - the original can be read on The Guardian website.)
Most of the plans governing actions after the death of the British Queen - and Buckingham Palace, the government, and the BBC have such plans - assume that Her Majesty will die after a short illness. Her entire family and doctors will be nearby at this moment. When the Queen Mother left this world at midday on Easter Sunday 2002 at her home in Windsor, she had time to call all her friends and even give away some of her horses.
This time, the senior physician, gastroenterologist Professor Hugh Thomas, will be responsible for the Queen's last days. He will look after the patient, control access to the room, and also decide what information to make public.
Of course, there will be reports about the Queen's condition - not much, but quite enough. “Queen Victoria is in great physical pain, with symptoms of great concern,” announced royal physician James Reid two days before her death in 1901. “The King's life is moving peacefully towards its end” was the last message from Dr. George V to Lord Dawson on January 20, 1936. Immediately afterwards, Dawson injected the king with 750 milligrams of morphine and a gram of cocaine (a dose capable of killing him twice) to ease the monarch's suffering and also to accurately record the time of death and enable The Times to print the news by the next morning.
Her eyes will close and Charles will become king. His brothers and sisters will kiss his hand. The first official to hear the news will be Sir Christopher Gade, the Queen's private secretary.
Gade will call the Prime Minister. 65 years ago, when the last monarch died (George VI), the message about his death was transmitted to Buckingham Palace under the code phrase "Hyde Park Corner" in order to avoid information leakage. For Elizabeth II, what will happen is called “London Bridge”. The Prime Minister will be awakened, and the official on the secret line will say only one phrase: “London Bridge has collapsed.” From the Foreign Office's Global Response Centre, whose location is highly classified, the sad news will be sent to the 15 countries outside Britain where the Queen is also head of state, and to the 36 Commonwealth countries for which she has served as a symbolic figure for decades.
The Prime Minister will be awakened, and the official on the secret line will say only one phrase: “London Bridge has collapsed.”
For some time, the news of her death will be available only to the narrowest circles and gradually, like the waves of an earthquake, it will spread wider and wider. Governors-general, ambassadors and prime ministers will learn about this first. They will open the cabinets and take out, to prepare, mourning armbands exactly three and a quarter inches wide.
The rest of us learn about death much earlier than in the past. On the morning of February 6, 1952, George VI's body was discovered at 7:30 am. The BBC announced his death only four hours later. When Princess Diana died in a Paris hospital, journalists accompanying Foreign Secretary Robin Cook during his visit to the Philippines learned about what had happened within 15 minutes. For many years, the BBC was the first to announce the death of a monarch, but its monopoly sank into oblivion. When the Queen dies, news of what happened will be sent to both the Press Association and media in other countries at the same time. At the same time, a footman in mourning attire will appear at the door of Buckingham Palace, walk across the dull pink gravel of the courtyard and pin a dark notice with a black border to the gate. At the same time, the palace website will be turned into one dark page, showing the same text on a dark background.
The screens will light up. Tweets will fly around the world. The BBC activates RATS, a Cold War-era messaging system designed in the event of an enemy destroying its entire infrastructure. Some of the staff heard it in action during tests, but most only know about its existence. “Every time there is a strange noise in the news room, someone will always ask: ‘Is that her, right?’” a reporter I knew told me.
For people who find this news stuck in traffic jams, the source will be the radio. British commercial radio stations have a network of "blue lights" that light up in the event of a national disaster. As soon as the lights flash, the DJ will know that in a few minutes he will need to switch the broadcast to a news broadcast, and before that, change the current music to a more neutral one. Each radio station, even hospital radio, has two playlists: “Mood 2” (sad) and “Mood 1” (very sad). "If you ever hear Sabers of Paradise - Haunted Dancehall (Nursery Remix) something terrible has happened," wrote Chris Price, a BBC radio producer.
Some journalists still can't get used to the fact that the media has contingency plans in place in the event of royal deaths. For example, for 30 years, BBC news teams worked out scenarios every Sunday morning where the Queen Mother died from a fish bone stuck in her throat. And once the scenario of the death of Princess Diana in a car accident on the M4 (one of the main motorways in England) was also worked out.
BBC news teams spent every Sunday morning rehearsing scenarios where the Queen Mother died from a fish bone stuck in her throat.
The main goal of rehearsals is to have a speech ready that will at least approximately correspond to the moment. “It is with great sadness that we make the following announcement,” said John Snagge, the BBC presenter who told the world about the death of George VI. According to the former head of the BBC, much the same words will be used for the Queen. Rehearsals for her are different from rehearsals for other members of the royal family. “She is the only monarch in the world known to most of us. People treat her differently,” John explains.
When people imagine a modern royal death in Britain, they inevitably think of Diana. Farewell to the Queen will be more monumental. It may not be as emotional, but the scope will be wider and the consequences more impressive.
To some extent, people will be stunned by the scale of what happened. The procedure for royal funerals is familiar to the British (Diana's funeral plan was called "Bridge of the Tay" and was originally intended for the Queen Mother). But the death of a British monarch and the rise of a new head of state is a ritual few can remember: three of the Queen's last four prime ministers were born after she ascended the throne. When the Queen dies, both houses of Parliament will be recalled, people will be let off work early, and airplane pilots will announce the sad news to their passengers.
Even more difficult for the nation will be the realization of the fact that the last connection between it and the former greatness of the empire has been lost. One of the historians who gave me an interview and who, like many others, wished to remain anonymous, said: “Oh, she will take everything. We were told that Churchill's funeral was a requiem for Britain as a great power. But in reality, everything will end with Elizabeth’s departure.”
“We were told that Churchill's funeral was a requiem for Britain as a great power. But in reality, everything will end with Elizabeth’s departure.”
Her films will remind us how different the country she inherited was. One piece of newsreel will be played over and over again - from her 21st birthday in 1947, when the young queen was holidaying with her parents in Cape Town. She was 6 thousand miles from home, but within the British Empire. The princess is sitting at the table at the microphone. The shadow of the tree plays on her shoulder. “I declare that my entire life, whether long or short, will be dedicated to serving you and serving our great Imperial family to which we all belong.”
Yet this taboo on discussion masks a parallel reality - the next big event in the life of the British nation is actually scheduled to the minute. A 92-year-old woman - the Queen will reach that age in April - has on average 3 years and 3 months to live, according to the Office of National Statistics. Elizabeth II is approaching the end of her reign at a moment of greatest uncertainty about Britain's place in the modern world; at a time when internal political tensions bring the kingdom close to destruction. Her death will also unleash internal destabilizing forces: Camilla, who will become queen, a new old king, and an uncertain future for the Commonwealth countries - largely of her own invention (the queen's title of "Head of the Commonwealth" is not hereditary). For example, in Australia, both the prime minister and the leader of the opposition support the country's transition to a republican system.
Coping with all these difficulties will be the Windsors' next main task. This is partly why the royal funeral and all subsequent ceremonies will be so large. The order of succession to the throne is only part of the work. Often, monarchs themselves took part in organizing ceremonies. Queen Victoria listed the contents of her coffin in 1875. The Queen Mother's funeral was rehearsed for 22 years. And Louis Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of India, personally compiled the summer and winter menus for his funeral dinner. “London Bridge is the Queen's exit plan. This is part of history,” one of her courtiers noted.
There should not be and will not be any unforeseen circumstances. If the Queen dies abroad, a BAe 146 from the Royal Squadron will fly from Norholt with the coffin on board. Royal undertakers at Leverton & Sons always have a so-called 'coffin on call' for royal emergencies. George V and George VI were buried at Sandringham Estate, Norfolk. If the Queen dies while visiting their graves there, her body will be transported to London by car within a couple of days.
But the most elaborate plans are in place if the queen dies at Balmoral in Scotland, where she spends three months of the year. This will launch a wave of exclusively Scottish rituals. The queen's body will initially rest in the smallest of her palaces, Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh, guarded by the royal archers in their traditional eagle-feathered hats. The body will then be carried along the so-called Royal Mile to St Giles' Cathedral for the service, and then placed aboard the Royal Train at Waverley Station for the sad voyage along the east coast.
If the Queen dies abroad, a BAe 146 from the Royal Squadron will fly from Norholt with the coffin on board.
Each scenario involves the queen's body being returned to the throne room at Buckingham Palace, which overlooks the northwest corner of the courtyard. There will be an altar, a pall, a royal standard and four grenadiers: bearskin caps tilted down, rifles pointed at the floor. Staff hired by the Queen more than 50 years ago will scurry through the corridors, following procedures they know by heart.
"Your professionalism trumps your emotions because there is a job that needs to be done," said one royal funeral veteran. There will be no time to grieve or think about what comes next. Charles will bring a lot of his own staff with him once he takes over. “Keep in mind,” said one courtier, “we are all here already working much longer than our allotted time.”
Outside, news crews will gather in designated areas opposite Gate Canada, near the start of Green Park. “I have a book in front of me with instructions 5-6 centimeters thick,” one of the TV directors who will cover the ceremony said during our telephone conversation. - Everything is planned. Everyone knows what to do." Flags will be lowered throughout the country, and the silence will be interrupted from time to time by the ringing of bells.
In 1952, "Big Tom" rang from the top of St. Paul's Cathedral every minute for two hours after the news was announced. The bells of Westminster Abbey also rang, as well as the Sevastopol bell, taken from Crimea during the Crimean War and ringing only on the occasion of the death of the monarch. In 1952 he rang 56 times - once for each year of George VI's life.
The first plans for London Bridge date back to the early 1960s, and since then 2-3 meetings have been held every year, invariably involving participants from different fields (police, fire, army, television) and changing locations. The plan is updated each time, deleting all previous versions. Various specific knowledge is also shared with the participants. For example, the slow march from St James's Door to Westminster Hall takes exactly 28 minutes. Or, for example, the coffin must have a false lid to accommodate all the royal jewelry.
In theory, everything is carefully planned. But there are things that will require Charles' decision just hours after the Queen's death. “Everything must be approved and signed by the Duke of Norfolk and the King,” one of the officials told me. In recent years, much of the work on London Bridge has focused on Charles's rise to the throne. “In fact, two things will happen at the same time: farewell to one monarch and the ascension to the throne of another,” said one of Charles’s advisers. The new king's first address to the nation is scheduled for the evening of his mother's death.
In the first 48 hours, the phones of all major government agencies will be ringing with calls - the last time a monarch died was so long ago that most national organizations will be at a loss. And although the official advice for everyone is the same as last time - to continue minding your own business, not everyone will follow it. If the Queen dies during the Royal Ascot race, it will be cancelled. Marylebone Cricket Club said it was insured against such an event. The National Theater will cancel performances if sad news is reported before 4pm, and continue them if it is later. All games, including golf, at the Royal Parks will be cancelled.
On D+1 (the day after the Queen's death) the flags will be raised again and Charles will be proclaimed King at 11am. The Council of Succession, convened in the main hall of St James's Palace, long preceded Parliament. The Council of Lords Spiritual and Temporal has its origins in the Great Anglo-Saxon Assembly over a thousand years ago. In theory, all 670 current members of the Privy Council, from Jeremy Corbyn to Ezekiel Alebua, the former prime minister of the Solomon Islands, are invited, but the palace hall can only accommodate about 150 people. In 1952, the Queen was one of two women present at her own proclamation.
Senior civil servant Richard Tillrook will read the formal proclamation of accession, and Charles will perform his first duty as the new king, vowing to defend the Crown of Scotland and mentioning the heavy duty that now falls on his shoulders. After his speech, trumpeters from the King's Guard will emerge from the cathedral and blow three trumpets in honor of the new monarch, and Garter Chief of Arms Thomas Woodcock (the official salary for this position of £49.07 has not changed since 1830) will begin the ritual speech of the proclamation of King Charles III. In 1952, the event was covered with only four cameras. This time the television audience will be in the billions.
But the announcements are just beginning. From St. James's Cathedral, the King of Arms of the Garter Chief and half a dozen heralds, dressed like actors in an expensive Shakespearean production, will solemnly march to the statue of Charles I in Trafalgar Square, which is considered the center of London, and read the news again. There will be a 7-minute 41-gun salute in Hyde Park. “There is not a single concession to modernity in this ceremony,” one former courtier told me. Tricorne hats and horses will be everywhere. Therefore, one of the things that TV people are afraid of is smartphones: every second person in the crowd will be holding a phone, which can ruin the historical picture.
Every second person in the crowd will be holding a smartphone, which can ruin the historical picture.
Following Charles's proclamation at St James's Cathedral, the new monarch will tour the country, stopping in Edinburgh, Belfast and Cardiff to attend funeral services for his mother and, in his new role, meet the heads of state of his subjects.
For many years, the art of royal performance was more characteristic of other dynasties: the Italians, the Russians and the Habsburgs. British ritual events have always been complete failures. For example, at Princess Charlotte's funeral, the undertakers were drunk. Ten years later, during the funeral of the Duke of York in St. George's Chapel, it was so cold that George Conning, the Foreign Secretary, contracted rheumatic fever, and the Bishop of London died altogether. “We have never seen such a motley, such an awkward, such a disgustingly made-up corpse,” people said to a Times correspondent at the funeral of George IV in 1830. Victoria's coronation a few years later was also nothing to write home about. The clergy confused their words, the singing itself was terrible, and the royal jewelers made the coronation ring for the wrong finger. “Among some nations, solemn ceremonies are a gift to the nation,” wrote the Marquess of Salisbury in 1860. “In England it’s exactly the opposite.”
Obsessed with death, Queen Victoria planned her own funeral in style. But it was her son, Edward VII, who contributed greatly to the revival of royal ceremony. He turned the state opening of parliament and military exercises into celebrations with elaborate costumes and decorations, and resurrected the medieval ritual of lying in state, in which the body of the deceased monarch is displayed in the building so that people can say goodbye. In 1932, George V started a tradition that continues to this day by broadcasting the nation's first Royal Christmas speech, which was written for him by Rudyard Kipling.
Elizabeth II, for all her practicality and lack of sentimentality, perfectly understands the theatrical power of the crown. “I must be seen to be believed in,” she once said. And there is no doubt that her funeral will cause a massive emotional outcry. “I think the death of the queen will increase patriotic sentiment,” one historian told me. “And as a result, it will strengthen support for Brexit.”
“I think the death of the queen will increase patriotic sentiment,” one historian told me. “And as a result, it will strengthen support for Brexit.”
A wave of these feelings will help cope with some of the inconvenient facts of the transfer of the throne. Camilla's restoration as Duchess of Cornwall has been a quiet success for the monarchy, but her emergence as queen will show just how far it can go. Since 2005, when Camilla married Charles, her official status has always been "princess consort". A status that has no historical or legal significance. But this will all change with the death of Elizabeth. By law, Camilla will become queen - this title is always awarded to the wives of kings. There are no other options. Current plans are for King Charles to introduce his wife to the public as queen the day after her mother's death.
Commonwealth countries are a different matter. In 1952, during the last change of monarch in the structure of the British Empire, at that time there were only eight members of the new organization. Sixty-five years later, there are 36 republics, which the Queen visited faithfully throughout her reign and which are now home to a third of the world's population. But the problem is that the status of the head of the Commonwealth is not inherited and there is no procedure for electing the next head.
For several years, the palace had quietly attempted to ensure Charles's succession as head of the bloc in the absence of any other obvious option. Last October, Julia Gillard, the former prime minister of Australia, said that Christopher Geidt, the Queen's private secretary, visited her in February 2013 to ask for her support for the idea. Canada and New Zealand have since adopted this course, although the title itself is unlikely to be included in the list of titles that will be listed at the proclamation of King Charles. It will be part of a low-key international lobbying effort that will begin as diplomats and presidents fill London in the days following the Queen's death.
Thousands of final preparations will take place over the nine days before the funeral. The soldiers will march along planned processional routes. The prayers will be rehearsed once again. At D+1, Westminster Hall will be closed and cleaned to a shine, and its stone floor will be covered with one and a half kilometers of carpets. Candles will be brought from the abbey. The streets around will turn into places for ceremonies. 10 bearers of the royal coffin will be selected and will begin training somewhere in barracks away from human eyes. The number of pallbearers depends on the material of the coffin - members of the royal family are usually buried in lead coffins. Diana's coffin, for example, weighed a quarter of a ton.
It is customary for members of the royal family to be buried in lead coffins. Diana's coffin, for example, weighed a quarter of a ton.
At D+4 the coffin will be moved to Westminster Hall, where it will lie for four days on a hearse draped in purple cloth. King Charles will return from his UK tour to lead mourners. The orb, scepter and imperial crown will be attached to the coffin, and soldiers will stand guard. Then the doors will be opened to the crowd, and a stream of people will pour in, interrupted only for an hour a day. About 300 thousand people came to say goodbye to George VI. The queue itself stretched for 6 kilometers. In the case of the queen, the palace expects at least half a million applicants.
Under the chestnut roof of the hall, everything will seem fantastically ordered, calibrated and calculated down to the centimeter, because it will be so. Four soldiers will stand motionless for 20-minute shifts, and two soldiers will be nearby in reserve, always ready to relieve. The officer, the eldest of the four, will stand at the feet of the late queen, and the youngest will be placed at her head. The wreaths on the coffin will be renewed every day. When Churchill lay in state in this hall in 1965, the ballroom at the nearby St Ermin's Hotel was converted into a replica of Westminster Hall so soldiers could practice their moves before going on duty. In 1936, the four sons of George V revived the tradition of The Prince's Vigil, where members of the royal family arrive unannounced and also stand guard, replacing soldiers.
Before dawn on the ninth day, the day of the funeral, in a quiet hall, all the decorations will be removed from the coffin and given for cleaning. In 1952, it took three jewelers about two hours to clean the jewelry from the dust that had accumulated during this time. For the majority of the population, this day will be a day off. Shops will be closed. The stock exchange will not open either. And the night before, services will be held in churches across the country.
Exactly at 9 am the silence will be broken by the ringing of Big Ben. The distance from Westminster Hall to the Abbey is only a few hundred meters. The ritual will seem familiar, even though it is relatively new: the Queen will be the first British monarch since 1760 to be buried in the Abbey. Two thousand guests will await the procession inside.
When the coffin reaches the doors of the abbey at 11 o'clock, the whole country will fall silent. Railway stations will stop announcing flights. The buses will stop and their drivers will go to the side of the road. In 1952, at this time, all passengers on the London-New York flight rose from their seats and bowed their heads, flying over Canada at an altitude of over 5 kilometers.
Inside the abbey the archbishop will speak. When the coffin arrives, it will be placed on the green cart used to bury the queen's father, his father, and his father's father. 138 sailors from the Royal Navy will carry the coffin through the streets. The tradition began in 1901 when horses in Queen Victoria's funeral procession began to run away and a group of young sailors stepped in to take their place.
In 2002, a Lancaster bomber and two Spitfires flew over the Queen Mother's cortege, flapping their wings in tribute. From Hyde Park Corner the hearse will travel 37 kilometers along the road to Windsor Castle, where the bodies of all British monarchs are buried. The Queen's staff will be waiting for her, standing on the lawn. Then the monastery gates will close and the cameras will stop broadcasting. Inside the chapel, the elevator will descend into the royal crypt and King Charles will drop a handful of red earth from a silver bowl.
Translation by Ton Travkin.
The mysterious death of the Queen of England. Elizabeth died, but is it hidden?A press release briefly appeared on the official Royal Family website stating that Queen Elizabeth died in her sleep yesterday morning before it was removed, with internet users taking screenshots of the statement and evidence that the press release appeared on Google.
An official statement released by the Queen's press secretary at the request of Prince Charles said Queen Elizabeth II died in her sleep at Sandringham after her health became "increasingly deteriorating in recent weeks due to a severe cough and chest infection."
However, the reason for the removal of this press release is unclear and mysterious.
Royal's website Royal is not responding to requests for clarification as to why they removed the statement.
The press release went into detail about the Queen's death, suggesting that it was not a blanket backup article published by accident.
Royal observers and conspiracy theorists believe the Queen is already dead and a secret funeral has already taken place.
It has been suggested that the royals may be delaying the public announcement of Queen Elizabeth's death until they have taken care of the secret rituals and they don't want the public to know.
The release included quotes from British Prime Minister Theresa May and the White House, suggesting that while the statement was not made publicly, it was made privately.
There is also speculation that the delay in announcing the news is due to a power struggle at the heart of the royal family. Prince Charles is currently fighting for the throne with William. William knows secrets about his father that the royal family doesn't want to voice, and William believes that this will help him jump over his father and be crowned king in 2017.
This situation may explain the sudden publication - and then removal of the death notice.
The Queen's death was announced on the BBC's Twitter account.
The BBC Twitter account posted a shocking message - “Breaking News: Buckingham Palace announces the death of Queen Elizabeth II at the age of 90. The circumstances are unknown. Details will appear soon."
Against the backdrop of recent news about Her Highness's deteriorating health, these reports could well seem true. Yes, even French Ambassador Gerard Araud to the United States believed in their authenticity and expressed condolences.
However, a little later, journalists established that the Twitter account is not an official BBC channel; in fact, the queen is alive. But there is no information about her health at the moment.
Let us recall that it was previously reported that Queen Elizabeth was placed under “house arrest” after the sensational Christmas Message.
Despite the fact that the news about the death of Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain has not yet been officially confirmed, readers of the sedition portal will find it useful to familiarize themselves with five facts about the royal family that are difficult to find in the official media:
1.The British Queen and drug trafficking
Part of the Queen of England's wealth comes from drug trafficking.
About this said Jacques Cheminade, French presidential candidate in the 2012 elections.
The UK financial regulator has fined the British Queen's Bank for failing to comply with anti-money laundering procedures, and French presidential candidate said that the Queen receives part of her income from drug trafficking.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FSA) has fined the Queen's bank, Coutts Bank, in the amount of £8.75 million. for failing to properly screen "public officials" and for failing to prevent money laundering.
« Coutts Bank engaged in serious and systematic misconduct that continued for almost three years. As a result, there was an unacceptable risk thatCoutts Bank processed money from crime "- says the official statement on the website of the Financial Control Authority.
The news comes less than a week after an outsider in the French presidential race said The Queen owes her wealth to drug money laundered " Jewish bankers in the City of London» .
2. Britain - the Land of the Covenant. All members of the royal family are circumcised according to Jewish custom.
Bnai- Brit (English) B"nai-B"rith International, Hebrew בְּנֵי בְּרִית, German. Bnei Briß. Translation: Sons of the Covenant) is one of the most famous and oldest Jewish public organizations. It has lodges (branches) in 40 countries.
Source:
Brit milah, which means "covenant of circumcision", is a Jewish ritual performed on a baby boy eight days after he is born. It involves the removal of the foreskin from the penis by a mohel, who is a person that has been trained to safely perform the procedure. Brit milah is also known by the Yiddish word "bris." It is one of the most well-known Jewish customs and signifies the unique relationship between a Jewish boy and God. Traditionally, a baby boy is named after his bris (in this paragraph we are talking about the rite of circumcision on the eighth day after the birth of a child. In other words, we are talking about the rite of circumcisionI)
Source: Electronic Jewish Encyclopedia
All male members of the British royal family are required to undergo circumcision. In particular, Prince Charles’s circumcision was announced 10 years ago on Alexander Gordon’s program by a descendant of Aaron, Moses’ brother, Kohen, Rabbi Zinovy Kogan.
Source: Video fragment at 57:50-58:15 minutes http://youtu.be/ZOmhuLnmKrc#t=57m50s
Brit (in Hebrew) is translated into English as covenant, which means covenant. Ish (Hebrew) person. British - Briton is a man of the covenant.
Source: Hebrew for Christians
3. Official powers of the Queen of Great Britain
In 16 countries, the British Queen is officially considered the head of state and is represented by governors-general appointed by the Queen. Among these countries, for example, is Canada, where the British Queen goes every two years on a “friendly visit”, which is actually an inspection.
4. The Royal Family and the "Masters of Money"
Prince Charles controls the so-called "Island Club", which includes 4,000 oligarchs from all Commonwealth countries. This is the financial and economic “fist” of the British monarchy, with the knock of which it can open or knock down many doors.
Moreover, 117 corporations whose headquarters are in the City of London are included in the list of the 500 largest corporations in the world. And the owners and heads of almost all of these corporations are members of the House of Peers.
The founders of the private printing press - the US Federal Reserve - the Warburgs, Morgans, Rockefellers and Rothschilds - or British peers, or bankers of British peers.
In Britain, only the lower House of Commons is elected. The top, which has the power to overrule the decisions of the bottom - The House of Peers is hereditary. Peers often descend from representatives of such “worthy” professions as racketeers, robbers, smugglers, drug dealers, arms and slave dealers, and pirates. For example, Sir Henry Morgan received a peerage and the post of governor of Jamaica for piracy. So did Sir Francis Drake.
By the way, about modern piracy. According to numerous indirect evidence, threads from Somali, South Chinese and other pirates lead straight to the British Admiralty. It is from there, according to sources, that information is leaked to the pirates about who, where and when to rob.
5. The Queen and the ritual murder of children
Lawyer Compan obtained an arrest warrant from a court in Brussels for the royal couple for their involvement in the disappearance of ten children. On February 25, 2013, six international court judges found Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip guilty of removing ten Indian children from the Kamloops Residential School in Canada on October 10, 1964. After this, no one saw the children again; they disappeared without a trace.
Queen Elizabeth subsequently facilitated the conclusion of lawyer David Compan. He was forcibly kept under anesthesia in the psychiatric hospital at Imperial College.
Eyewitnesses testify: The Vatican and drug cartels are trafficking children, supplying them for satanic sacrifices carried out by pedophiles - members of royal families, corporate heads and politicians.
The Catholic Church and drug cartels make huge profits by supplying children to an international network of pedophiles who worship Satan - businessmen, politicians and members of the royal families of Europe. Since May this year, more than 34 witnesses have testified at the International Common Law Court ICLCJ in Brussels about child sexual abuse and child sacrifice practiced by members of the global elite in the Ninth Circle Cult of Satanic Child Sacrifice. Five international judges reviewed the evidence against members of the community, including the main defendants - Pope Francis, former Pope Ratzinger and Queen Elizabeth. In 2013, the ICLCJ found Queen Elizabeth and Pope Ratzinger guilty of crimes against humanity and issued a warrant for their arrest.
The European mafia, known as the "Octopus" or 'Ndrangheta, has been said to make a lot of money by providing drugs and children to the highest echelons of power in the Catholic and Anglican churches, Queen Elizabeth, members of the royal families, European, Canadian, Australian and American politicians and heads corporations. “The Catholic Church is the largest purveyor and trafficker of children in human history, making billions annually by selling newborns from Catholic orphanages, orphanages and other hidden sources,” Antonio Barrero testified before five ICLCJ judges. “In Spain alone, between 1940 and 1980, the Catholic Church collected more than $20 billion in revenue from the sale of more than 300,000 children.” +
Queen Elizabeth II was born on April 21, 1926. She has been the reigning Queen of Great Britain since 1952. After the death of her father, she took the throne at the age of 25. The Queen is currently the longest reigning monarch in the country's history.
Throughout her reign, Elizabeth II was periodically criticized by supporters of the abolition of the monarchy, as well as by some British media. But, despite this, the queen was able to maintain her popularity in the country.
Queen Elizabeth II's illness
The Queen is famous all over the world. The head of the British Commonwealth of Nations is a living symbol of the country. She is currently 90 years old. February 2017 will mark 65 years since the Queen took her throne.
Recently, the British Queen's health has deteriorated slightly. Doctors diagnosed inflammation of the sciatic nerve.
There were speculations in the media that due to the fact that the queen spends a lot of time on her feet and participates in a large number of ceremonies, this disease appeared in him. Due to the fact that the queen spent many years on her feet, pain in her back and legs had become chronic.
According to doctors, this disease may cause the queen to appear less at ceremonies in the near future.
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Otherwise, the queen’s health is fine, despite her age. Currently, she feels very good, which makes her family and the whole country happy, because her death will be a great loss for both the country and the whole world.
