According to the man in charge ofthe Queen's state funeral, the event will “unite people across the globe and resonate with people of all faiths” and pay a “fitting tribute to an extraordinary reign”.
The Earl Marshal, the Duke of Norfolk, described the responsibility as “both humbling and daunting. An honour and a great responsibility”.
Here is everything you need to know about it.
What is the timeline for the Queen’s state funeral?
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Today, Monday 19 September, 2000 people, including world leaders and foreign royals, will gather inside Westminster Abbey in London for the nation's longest reigning monarch's final farewell.
The doors of Westminster Abbey will open at 8am on Monday, when the congregation will begin to take their seats, three hours before the ceremony begins.
The King will once again lead his family in marching behind the Queen's coffin as it is brought from Westminster Hall, where it had been been lying in state, to Westminster Abbey for the funeral service at 10.44am.
He will walk alongside Anne, Andrew, and Edward, with the Queen's grandsons Peter Phillips, the Duke of Sussex and the Prince of Wales trailing behind.
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The late monarch's son-in-law, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, the Queen's cousin, the Duke of Gloucester, and her nephew, the Earl of Snowdon, will follow.
During the procession the Queen's coffin will be carried atop a 123-year-old gun carriage hauled by 98 Royal Navy sailors using ropes - a tradition dating back to Queen Victoria's funeral.
The procession will be led by 200 musicians from the Pipes and Drums of the Scottish and Irish Regiments, the Brigade of Gurkhas and the Royal Air Force.
The Earl Marshal has stated that heads of state and foreign government leaders, including foreign royal families, governors general, and Realm prime ministers, will congregate at the Royal Hospital Chelsea and "travel under collective arrangements" to the abbey.
At 11am, the funeral service will begin.
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Moving elements of the funeral will include the sounding of the Last Post at 11.55am as the service nears its end, followed by a two-minute national silence which will be observed by the abbey congregation and by millions across the UK.
The Reveille will be followed by the National Anthem, followed by a Lament played by the Queen's Piper, which will put the service to an end at 12pm.
The full timings of the day are as follows:
- 6.30am – Doors will close to the public for the Queen’s lying in state in Westminster Hall.
- 8am – The doors of Westminster Abbey will open to the congregation to take their seats for the state funeral service.
- 10.35am – Just after 10.35am, a bearer party, found by The Queen’s Company, 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, will lift the coffin from the catafalque. It will then carry it in procession from Westminster Hall to the Royal Navy’s state gun carriage
- 10.44am – The gun carriage will set off at 10.44am.
- 10.52am – The procession arrives at the West Gate of Westminster Abbey where the bearer party will lift the coffin from the state gun carriage and carry it inside for the state funeral service.
- 11am – The state funeral service begins.
- 11.55am – The Last Post will sound followed by a national two-minute silence.
- 12pm – Reveille, the national anthem and a lament played by the Queen’s Piper will bring the state funeral service to an end at approximately noon.
- 12.15pm – The procession will set off for Wellington Arch at Hyde Park Corner, following the route of Broad Sanctuary Parliament Square (south and east sides), Parliament Street, Whitehall, Horse Guards including Horse Guards Arch, Horse Guards Road, The Mall, Queen’s Gardens (south and west sides), Constitution Hill and Apsley Way.
- 1pm – The procession will arrive at Wellington Arch. The bearer party will lift the coffin from the state gun carriage and place it in the state hearse. The state hearse will then depart on its journey to Windsor as the parade gives a royal salute and the national anthem is played.
- 3.06pm – The state hearse will approach Shaw Farm Gate on Albert Road, Windsor, and join the procession, which will have been formed up and in position.
- 3.10pm – The procession will step off. The route will be: Albert Road, Long Walk, Cambridge Gate, Cambridge Drive, George IV Gate, Quadrangle (south and west sides), Engine Court, Norman Arch, Chapel Hill, Parade Ground and Horseshoe Cloister Arch.
- 3.20pm – The door of St George’s Chapel will open for the congregation for the committal service.
- 3.25pm – Members of the royal family who will not join the procession will arrive at St George’s Chapel for the service.
- 3.40pm – The King and other royal family members who are walking in the procession will join it at the quadrangle on the north side as it passes into Engine Court.
- 3.53pm – The procession will halt at the bottom of the West Steps of St George’s Chapel in Horseshoe Cloister. The bearer party will lift the coffin from the state hearse, from where it will be carried in procession up the West Steps.
- 4pm – The committal service will begin. The length of the service is not yet known but when it ends. It marks the end of public ceremonial arrangements.
- 7.30pm – A private burial service will be conducted by the Dean of Windsor.
Can I watch the funeral on TV?
The BBC has confirmed that Huw Edwards, Kirsty Young, and David Dimbleby will be leading coverage of the Queen's funeral.
The special programming will be available on BBC One and iPlayer from 8am to 5pm, with BSL coverage on BBC Two.
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ITV also announced that broadcasters Tom Bradby and Julie Etchingham will lead coverage of the Queen's funeral.
Their coverage of the historic funeral service will begin at 9.30am.
From 6am to midnight, all of the day's programming will be carried concurrently on the main channel, five digital channels, and the ITV Hub - a first for the broadcaster.
The military parade transporting the late monarch from London to Windsor Castle, as well as the committal service at St George's Chapel, will also be covered by both networks.
What happens after the state funeral?
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Following the funeral, the King and members of the royal family will walk behind the Queen's coffin as it departs Westminster Abbey and is taken to Windsor in the state hearse.
The coffin will be transferred to the funeral hearse at the corner of Hyde Park before embarking on its journey from London to Windsor.
The route will go as follows:
- Wellington Arch
- South Carriage Drive
- Queens Gate
- Cromwell Road
- Talgarth Road via Hammersmith Flyover
- Great West Road (A4)
- Great South West Road (A30)
- London Road (A30), via under Chiswick Flyover
- Staines Road (A30)
- Windsor Road (A308)
- Albert Road (A308) to Shaw Farm Gate
The committal service, which will take place at 4pm in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle, will be attended by 800 people, including members of the Queen's Household and Windsor estate personnel.
The Queen will be buried alongside the Duke of Edinburgh in King George VI's Memorial Chapel at 7.30pm.
Will the burial service be on television?
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The committal service at 4pm will be televised, but the burial service later in the evening will not.
The service, which will be led by the Dean of Windsor and attended by the King and royals, will be kept completely private as a "deeply personal family occasion."