Two minutes of nationwide silence will be observed shortly before the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II ends on Monday, palace officials have revealed.   

  Buckingham Palace also said that Queen Elizabeth II’s children will stand vigil around her coffin on Friday night, similar to their vigil at St.  Giles in Scotland earlier this week.   

  King Charles III will join Princess Anne and Princes Andrew and Edward around the coffin, which is currently in Westminster Hall in London.   

  The palace also revealed that the king will host a reception for visiting heads of state at Buckingham Palace on Sunday ahead of the state funeral.   

  The Queen died a week ago at the age of 96 at her country house of Balmoral Castle in Scotland.   

  The palace outlined what to expect during Monday’s ceremonies for the late monarch in a briefing on Thursday.   

  On the day of the funeral, around 10:35 A.M.  (5:35 a.m. ET), the coffin will be raised from the bunker where it rests by a party formed by the Queen’s Company, 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards and carried in procession from the hall to the Royal Naval State Arms, a senior palace official said.   

  The gun carriage has also been used for the funerals of previous monarchs, including those of King Edward VII, King George V, King George VI.  It was also used for the funerals of the Queen’s first Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, and her cousin, Lord Louis Mountbatten.   

  As per previous tradition, the gun carriage will start at 10:44 am.  (5:44 a.m. ET) and will be drawn by the 142 Royal Marines, who are service personnel, according to the senior palace official.   

  It will then be processed on the short journey from New Palace Yard to Westminster Abbey, flanked by the Royal Navy and Royal Marines.  The procession will be led by a massive Pipes & Drums of the Scottish and Irish Regiments, the Gurkha Brigade and the Royal Air Force with musicians numbering 200 in total.   

  The king, members of the royal family and members of both households of the monarch and the Prince of Wales will follow directly behind the coffin.   

  For the journey, the coffin will be flanked by the pallbearer’s party, esquires established from the Service Equerries to the Queen, in addition to detachments of The King’s Body Guards of The Honorable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms, The Yeomen of the Guard and the Royal Company of Archers.   

  The service will be conducted by the Reverend David Hoyle, the Dean of Westminster in Westminster Abbey, from 11am.  (6 a.m. ET).   

  UK Prime Minister Liz Truss and Patricia Scotland, the Commonwealth Secretary General, will deliver lectures.  The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, will preach.   

  Towards the end of the service, around 11:55 A.M.  (6:55 a.m. ET), the Last Post will be played before the two-minute silence is observed.   

  The state funeral will be concluded by the Queen’s Piper, who at noon (7 a.m. ET) will play a Reveille, the National Anthem and a Lament.   

  This is a developing story – more to come