The death of Queen Elizabeth will be the most disruptive event in Britain in the last 70 years

Queen Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God
Queen of this Realm and of Her other Realms and
Territories, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender
of the Faith, is not going to live forever.
Since ascending to the throne in 1952, the
monarch has seen 13 Prime Ministers serve Britain,
and lived through another 12 US presidents (with
number 13 on the way). She's now 90. At some
point — not for many years yet, we hope — Queen
Elizabeth II's reign will come to an end.
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But what happens then?
For at least 12 days — between her passing, the
funeral and beyond — Britain will grind to a halt.
It'll cost the British economy billions in lost
earnings due to the chaos. And both the funeral
and the subsequent coronation will become formal
national holidays, each with an estimated economic
hit to GDP of between £1.2 and £6 billion as
banks, businesses and the stock markets close, to
say nothing of organisational costs.
But to focus on the financial disruption doesn't
begin to describe the sheer magnitude of it. It will
be an event unlike anything Britain has seen since
the end of the Second World War. There will be
trivial disruptions — the BBC will cancel all comedy
shows, for example — and jarring cultural changes.
Prince Charles may change his name, for instance,
and the words of the national anthem will be
changed, too. The British Commonwealth might
even unravel completely.
The deaths of Princess Diana and the Queen
Mother both brought on waves of public mourning
and hysteria. But the Queen, due to her longevity
and fundamental place atop British society, will be
on a whole new level above that.
The vast majority of British people have simply
never known life without the Queen.
It will be a strange, uncertain time.
The early hours
Much depends on the manner of the Queen's
passing. If it is expected (from a long illness, say),
then detailed plans will have been put in place for
handling it and making the announcement. These
plans are already being made: Inside Buckingham
Palace, arrangements for after the Queen's passing
and the subsequent succession are known as the
"Bridge."
But if it's sudden, unexpected, or even in public —
as was the case with Princess Diana's death in
1997 — then the news will get out immediately, in
an unplanned, uncontrolled fashion.
Either way, the majority of staff at the Palace and
associated institutions will be immediately sent
home. (According to The Daily Beast, if it happens
overnight, it will be announced at 8 a.m.) The
Royal Court has a staff hotline for distributing news
and instructions to employees in the event of
occasions like this. Many of the details in this story
were provided to Business Insider by a former staff
member of the Palace.
Assuming the Queen's passing was expected, the
news will spread at first via the main TV channels.
All BBC channels will stop their programming and
show the BBC1 feed for the announcement. The
other independent channels won't be obligated to
interrupt their regular programming. But they
almost certainly will.
At the BBC, anchors actively practice for the
eventuality of the Monarch's passing so they won't
be caught unaware on their shifts. The BBC's Peter
Sissons was heavily criticised for wearing a red tie
to announce the Queen Mother's passing (as seen
above), and the BBC now keeps black ties and
suits at the ready at all times.
Presenters also run drills in which they're required
to make sudden "spoof" announcements that are
never broadcast. In 2015, a BBC journalist tweeted
that the Queen had died (on the same day she was
visiting hospital, no less) after not realising a
rehearsal was going on — with the "news"
subsequently being picked up by foreign news
outlets.
"A journalist working for the BBC's language
services, who had not been sent the email
[informing staff about the rehearsal], saw an
internal TV monitor which was showing the
rehearsal," the BBC Trust said. "A number of
tweets were sent from her Twitter account. The
first stated that the Queen was being treated in
hospital, the second stated that the Queen had
died; the tweets included a link to BBC World's
official Twitter feed."
All comedy will be cancelled
The last death of a Monarch was in 1952, and the
BBC stopped all comedy for a set period of
mourning after the announcement was made. The
Daily Mail reports that the BBC plans to do the
same again today, cancelling all comedy until after
the funeral.
CNN has pre-recorded packages on the Queen's
life ready to be aired at a moment's notice, we're
told — and so will every other major news channel.
Some businesses may choose to close if the
announcement happens during working hours. The
protocols government bodies will follow will
emanate from the Department of Culture, Media
and Sport (though they may also originate from the
Palace). But the immediate government response
beyond official statements of condolences will be
hard to predict, the former palace employee we
spoke to said. The last monarch died in 1952;
procedures that seemed apt then may be woefully
antiquated in the twenty-first century.
Mourners wore black armbands to show respect for
George VI, for example, but would similar public
displays of mourning be employed today? It's
impossible to know until it happens.
Flags will be flown at half-mast until 8 a.m. the
day after the funeral, according to guidance from
the Greater London Lieutenancy, with the exception
of Proclamation Day (more on that shortly).
Churches may also toll their bells — either on the
day of the death, or the day after.
Whatever happens formally, the shock on the day
of the Queen's passing will see Britain effectively
cease to function. The day of the funeral, around
two weeks later, will be declared a bank holiday,
but "shell-shocked" mourning will continue
throughout this time.
There will be a brief resurrection of the British
Empire Given the Queen's international
significance, it will almost certainly be the top
news story across the entire world. It will trend
globally on social media. After all, Britain has a
massive overseas presence — not just via its
embassies, but also former colonies and the
Commonwealth, which swears loyalty to the crown,
and more informally in any country where English is
spoken.
The British Empire once covered a quarter of the
earth's landmass and for a brief, surreal period it
will feel as if the Empire still exists, as all its
former subjects will turn toward Britain for the
news.
A former ambassador we spoke to said what will
happen overseas depends on the manner of the
Queen's passing. If it has been long-expected,
there will be detailed plans and procedures in
place. If it's sudden, overseas posts will look to the
Foreign Office for urgent guidance.
A few things will definitely happen overseas: Social
functions will be cancelled. The Union Jack flag
will be flown at half-mast until after the funeral
(this will also happen at home in the UK). Officials
will enter a period of mourning, and dress
appropriately. Condolence books will be prepared
for visitors to leave messages in. But the
ambassador also stressed there is a massive
amount of uncertainty as to what will actually
happen. It has been more than 60 years since the
last monarch died. Society has changed a huge
amount in that time. We're getting ahead of
ourselves, however.
What will happen inside the Palace?
Behind closed doors at the Palace, an "Accession
Council" will convene Once the majority of the
staff are out the way and the public tourist
attractions are closed, an Accession Council will be
held at St. James's Palace to declare the
successor formally — Prince Charles, barring any
unforeseen circumstances. The Accession Council
will be attended by Privy Councillors, Lords, the
Lord Mayor of the City of London, and High
Commissioners of certain Commonwealth
countries, amongst others.
This council is not required to make Queen
Elizabeth II's successor "official" however —
Charles will become the monarch from the moment
of her passing. There is never not a Sovereign on
the throne. This is also why the the Royal Standard
is never flown at half-mast (unlike the Union Jack).
Charles could change his name
It's also worth discussing the possibility of the
crown "leapfrogging" Charles in favour of his son,
Prince William — a possibility that has been
discussed in the media repeatedly.
This would cause a constitutional crisis, and
definitely will not happen. Prince William himself
has said there is "no question" of it happening.
Instead, Prince William will become the new Prince
of Wales — Charles' current role.
After all, Charles has waited and prepared for this
job for his entire life. And his mother's longevity
means that he's no long young either — he will be
at least 68 when he takes the throne, past the
British age of retirement.
“Impatient? Me? What a thing to suggest! Yes of
course I am," he said in 2012. "I’ll run out of time
soon. I shall have snuffed it if I’m not careful."
At the council, the new Monarch (presumably
Charles) will swear loyalty to Parliament, and to
the Church of England. He will also become the
new Supreme Governor of the church. (Catholics
cannot ascend to the throne.)
The council will also make a "Proclamation of
Accession," to be read out on "Proclamation Day"
soon after the death in London Edinburgh, Windsor,
York, and other towns and villages throughout the
country.
This was the most recent Proclamation, from when
Queen Elizabeth II ascended to the throne:
Whereas it has pleased Almighty God to call to His
Mercy our late Sovereign Lord King George the
Sixth of Blessed and Glorious memory, by whose
Decease the Crown is solely and rightfully come to
the High and Mighty Princess Elizabeth Alexandra
Mary:
WE, therefore, the Lords Spiritual and Temporal of
this Realm, being here assisted with these His late
Majesty's Privy Council, with representatives of
other Members of the Commonwealth, with other
Principal Gentlemen of Quality, with the Lord
Mayor, Aldermen, and Citizens of London, do now
hereby with one voice and Consent of Tongue and
Heart publish and proclaim that the High and
Mighty Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary is now,
by the death of our late Sovereign of happy
memory, become Queen Elizabeth the Second, by
the Grace of God Queen of this Realm and of all
Her other Realms and Territories, Head of the
Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith, to whom
Her lieges do acknowledge all Faith and constant
Obedience with hearty and humble Affection,
beseeching God by whom Kings and Queens do
reign, to bless the Royal Princess Elizabeth the
Second with long and happy Years to reign over us.
Charles won't necessarily become "King Charles,"
however. Upon ascending to the Throne, royals
may pick their "regnal" name from any of their
Christian or middle names. Arthur Bousfield and
Gary Toffoli write that when Queen Elizabeth II was
asked, she opted for "my own of course — what
else?" But if Prince Charles felt inclined to change,
as Charles Philip Arthur George, he could also be
"King Philip," "King Arthur," or "King George."
The Queen's body will "lie in state"
As these discussions are ongoing, the Queen's
coffin will be prepared to lie in state — that is, to
be presented for public viewing so people can pay
their respects.
Before this, however, both Houses of Parliament
will sit, or be recalled if necessary. Members will
have the opportunity to take a new oath of
allegiance to the new Monarch. All MPs must
swear allegiance to the present Monarch — though
some republican MPs will cross their fingers when
making the 500-year-old oath. Members of both
houses will also present addresses of condolences
and loyalty to the new Sovereign, a House of Lords
spokesperson told me, in a format that is yet to be
determined.
After this, both Houses will be suspended until after
the official State Funeral.
The Queen's body will lie in state in Westminster
Hall. There will be a short ceremony to mark the
coffin's arrival, after which the public will be able
to file past and pay their respects. The Hall will be
open all but a single hour a day for the duration,
the spokesperson says.
When the Queen Mother lay in state for three days,
her grieving grandsons relieve the official guard to
stand guard over the coffin for a short period; it
was called the Vigil of the Princes. Something
similar happened for George V. While not a formal
ceremony, it's likely a similar act of remembrance
would be accorded to Queen Elizabeth II. More
than 200,000 members of the public paid their
respects as the Queen Mother lay in state; the
scale of mourning for the Queen should easily
eclipse this.
Throughout this period, there will be a massive,
hysterical outpouring of public grief. It won't just
be sombre dress and a minute of silence at sports
games — it'll be a punch to the gut of the national
psyche.
When Princess Diana died, the public turned out in
their tens of thousands to lay flowers outside
Buckingham Palace — by some estimates as many
as 1 million bouquets were left. A memorial appeal
raised £20 million. People queued for ten hours or
more to sign memorial books.
"Everything closed, saturation TV coverage, no one
at work" on the day of the funeral, recounted one
witness to the BBC (despite it not being a national
holiday). There were "scenes of unbelievable grief,"
said another: "It was as though all of these people
had lost someone incredible dear to them and their
emotion was genuine. It worried me hugely —
especially after days of mounting hysteria on the
streets of Kensington, people walking into the road
blinded by tears, etc. — people appeared to be
losing their grip on reality."
The Guardian's Jonathan Freedland writes that
many Britons felt "forced to close their shops or
cancel sporting events on the day of the funeral,
lest they feel the rage of the tear-stained hordes
outside."
Given the Queen's stature, and how intrinsically
she is woven into the fabric of modern Britain, it's
likely there will be even greater public mourning for
her passing.
It will be an extremely star-studded funeral
Queen Elizabeth II's body will continue to lie in
state until the day of the funeral, which will be a
public holiday. The Daily Mail believes this will be
12 days after the death. The coffin will then be
transported to Westminster Abbey by gun carriage
for a State Funeral.
It will probably be the best-attended funeral of all
time. World leaders from across the globe will flock
to attend. She's the most senior head of state in
the world — on the throne for nearly 65 years.
The service will be led by Justin Welby, the
Archbishop of Canterbury and the second-most
senior figure in the Church of England (after the
Monarch). According to The Daily Beast, the Queen
has been actively involved in planning parts of her
funeral, and has a "sanguine" view of her mortality.
On the day of Princess Diana's funeral, "more than
a million people lined the route of the funeral
cortege," according to the BBC, with 30 million
Brits tuning in to watch it. Worldwide, there were
as many as 2.5 billion viewers. The viewership of
Queen Elizabeth II's funeral is likely to be
equivalent, if not even more.
What about the Queen's final resting place?
Once the funeral is concluded, it'll be time for the
burial. Queen Elizabeth II may well have already
decided this — in which case it could either be
Sandringham or Balmoral in Scotland. These two
properties are unique in that they belong to the
Queen in a personal capacity, rather than to the
crown.
Alternately, she could be buried at St. George's
Chapel at Windsor, the site of the grave of King
George VI — her father.
After a certain appropriate period of mourning — up
to a year or so — there will be a coronation. It's a
highly ceremonial affair, although the new monarch
technically has the ability to do whatever he wants
— after all, he is already the King. Charles'
authority as sovereign does not derive from the
ceremony, so he could choose to eschew it
altogether, should he desire.
But assuming Charles does not wish to totally
break with tradition, it will — again — be held at
Westminster Abbey. And, again, it will be officiated
by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
The entire event will be broadcast on television
(and also streamed online), and there will be
parties up and down the country. After the Royal
Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton
in 2011, there were thousands of street parties
celebrating. The same will be true of the
coronation. As a national holiday, the Royal
Wedding in 2011 lost the economy between £1.2
and 6 billion, and the Coronation will be similar — in
addition to the direct cost to the taxpayer of
holding the largest British ceremonial event since
the 1950s.
The little things...
The Queen buried, a new King on the throne... is
that it? Of course not.
There will be hundreds of changes taking place up
and down the country in the weeks and months
ahead. First off, new currency will begin being
printed and minted immediately. The portraits of
Charles will already have been made in preparation.
They won't seek to replace the entire stock of
currency overnight, however — it will take several
years to do so, much like how older notes and
coins are gradually removed from circulation today.
Even Trafalgar Square will change
Another unexpected change: Police will need new
insignia on their helmets. They currently display the
Queen's initials and regnal number. Likewise, a
great deal of military insignia will require updating.
Passports too will need a refresh. The British
passport currently "requests and requires in the
Name of Her Majesty all those whom it may
concern to allow the bearer to pass freely without
let or hindrance." Stamps will also need updating
so that they show the new King's head rather than
the Queen's.
These small changes matter more than you would
expect. After the current Queen was crowned, her
regnal number — II — caused controversy in
Scotland, which she also rules, as there was never
a Scottish Elizabeth I. When postboxes bearing her
cypher were erected in Scotland, some were
attacked and vandalised.
As signs of the Queen's reign are slowly erased,
she will also be memorialised. The fourth plinth in
Trafalgar Square is currently dedicated to
temporary statues and works of art, but former
London Mayor Ken Livingstone says his
understanding is that "the fourth plinth is being
reserved for Queen Elizabeth II."
It may end the Commonwealth
The Queen's passing may have far more profound
and long-lasting consequences than just new
postage stamps, however. It may well spell the end
of the Commonwealth as we know it.
The 53-country organisation includes 16 countries
where the British Monarch is officially the Head of
State, including Australia, Canada, Jamaica, New
Zealand, and Barbados. It's a remnant of the
British Empire which today exists mainly as a trade
and political organisation. It has few formal powers
but carries the weight of symbolism: Many of these
countries were part of the Empire against their will,
and almost all of them declared independence long
ago.
With Queen Elizabeth II out of the way, some may
choose to end this union with Britain once and for
all.
Australia, for example, has already held a
referendum on becoming a Republic once before, in
1999. It was a relatively close-run thing, with the
republicans ultimately losing 45% to 55%. But much
support for the Monarchy arguably derives from
personal affection for the Queen herself. With her
gone, many Commonwealth nations may decide the
time has come to separate. In Canada, for
example, there is speculation that the death of the
Queen might prompt a severing of ties: "I think
Charles might solve the problem," Ajax, Ontario
mayor Steve Parish told The Guardian. This also
depends on the time of the Queen's death. Many
politicians in Commonwealth countries — like
former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott — are
staunch monarchists, certain to try and block any
attempt at Republicanism on their watch. But if the
Queen's passing comes when politicians less
enamoured with the monarchy are in office,
resurgent republicanism may find a more receptive
audience.
A republican Britain?
Depending on Charles' reign, republicanism may
grow in prominence in Britain too. But there's no
chance of Britain becoming a Republic in the near
future. Support for the Monarch is deeply
entrenched in the nation's psyche, with 66% of
respondents in one survey saying Britain is better
off as a Monarchy, and with just 17% opting for a
Republic.
On September 9, 2015, Queen Elizabeth II broke
the record set by her great-great-grandmother,
Queen Victoria, becoming the longest reigning
British monarch ever.
And in December 2016, in an apparent concession
to her age, the Queen announced she is stepping
down as patron of a number of organisations she
has supported, including charities and academic
institutions.
Though her death is hopefully a long way off yet, it
is definitely coming — and with it, the end of an
epic chapter in Britain's history, and the start of a
strange new one.

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