Queen Elizabeth II's coffin will make a poignant journey to Buckingham Palace on Tuesday while King Charles III will travel to Northern Ireland for the first time as monarch.
Thousands of members of the public moved solemnly past the oak coffin through Monday night as it stood on public view for 24 hours at St Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh.
The King, on his Operation Spring Tide tour around the UK with the Queen Consort, left Scotland and headed to Belfast before returning to London in the evening.
Members of the public are already queueing for Queen Elizabeth II's lying in state at Westminster Hall, which opens on Wednesday, and thousands are still placing floral tributes in Green Park.
Queen Elizabeth II's coffin
Murdo MacLeod
Mourners have been asked by Royal Parks not leave marmalade sandwiches – a nod to Her Majesty's comedy sketch with Paddington Bear – for fear of a negative effect on wildlife.
At 6pm, Queen Elizabeth II will depart Scotland for the last time.
Her coffin will be flown from Edinburgh Airport to London on an RAF Globemaster C-17 flight, accompanied by her daughter the Princess Royal.
The King will be joined by Camilla, Queen Consort as he receives his mother’s coffin at Buckingham Palace, where she spent so many of her decades as sovereign.
The Prince and Princess of Wales will also be at the Palace.
A guard of honour formed of three officers and 96 soldiers from The King’s Guard will be mounted in the Quadrangle.
King Charles III travelled to Northern Ireland on Tuesday
Henry Nicholls
Military commands, usually shouted, are given as quietly as possible in honour of the solemn occasion.
The coffin will remain in the Bow Room overnight before a procession on Wednesday to Westminster Hall for the start of the lying in state.
The King’s visit to Northern Ireland earlier in the day comes ahead of a trip to Wales later in the week.
After touching down in Belfast, the King and Queen Consort travelled to Hillsborough Castle in Co Down, the royal residence in Northern Ireland, for several engagements.
They held a private audience with new Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris, as well as meeting representatives of political parties in the region.
The couple then received a message of condolence on behalf of the people of Northern Ireland from the Speaker of the Stormont Assembly Alex Maskey.
They then attended a reception at the castle, hosted by Mr Heaton-Harris, before travelling to St Anne’s Cathedral in Belfast.
The new monarch also met leaders from all the major faiths in Northern Ireland.
Before leaving, the King and Queen Consort took part in a walkabout at Writers’ Square.
The royal couple travelled along Main Street and Lisburn Street in Hillsborough before heading to Belfast along Wellington Place, Donegall Square North, Chichester Street and Victoria Street.
Both Houses of Parliament gathered at Westminster Hall in London on Monday to express their condolences to the new monarch, and Charles promised “faithfully to follow” the example set by his mother.
Later, the King led the Royal Family in a procession behind Queen Elizabeth II's coffin in Edinburgh as it was taken from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles’ Cathedral.
