Charles has returned to his home in Highgrove in Gloucestershire and is not expected to attend any public events tomorrow after a grueling week of near-constant public appearances. In the detailed planning for the wake of the Queen’s death – known as ‘London Bridge’ – a day was set at this point for the new monarch to have some time away from public duties. The period will allow the King to take a break, but it is understood he will continue to prepare for his new role and will already receive his red boxes of state papers. The King walked behind his mother’s coffin on Wednesday. Credit: PA The new monarch led the royal family in a public show of respect for the late queen by walking behind her coffin with his brothers, sons and other relatives as it was taken to Westminster Hall, where it will lie in state until the state funeral on Monday. . Watched by tens of thousands en route from Buckingham Palace, the King committed his mother to the care of the nation for a period of four days. Every day of the year, except Christmas Day, it will receive from government ministers – and from representatives in the Commonwealth and foreign countries – information in the form of policy papers, cabinet papers and Foreign Office cables. The correspondence also includes a daily summary of events in Parliament, letters and other government documents sent by his private secretary in the red boxes also used by government ministers to carry confidential documents. All documents must be read and, where necessary, approved and signed. The red boxes are made by the leather company Barrow and Gale but it is not known if Charles has received a new set or is using the Queen’s boxes for now. The late Queen still used the boxes made for her at her coronation in 1953, having refurbished them over the years. The Queen’s remarkable life remembered and the King’s inaugural address analyzed in our latest episodes of What You Need to Know
