in the houses where she was of course monarch, balmoral, she will lie at the palace of holyroodhouse where she came every year for a week, every summer she would be here for a week for official scottish events. then she will go to the cathedral. it's been very meticulously designed for maximum ability of people to pay their respects and of course the royals will be here tomorrow. >> and the length of time it's going to take, they're estimate it's going to take six hours but it could take longer. >> i think it's -- this is going to be the test, if you will, for how things will be in london. how many people come out for today's procession -- sorry, for today's moving and tomorrow's procession. >> let's bring in max foster and chri christiane. can you give us an idea of who is going to be invited to the ceremonies during the queen's final journey. >> edinburgh we're expecting key members of the royal family, i'm

also expecting prince harry to go there as well. his movements are being organized separately because he is no longer a working royal but you will see some key members there, but this is really an opportunity for the people of scotland to pay their respects to the queen. .i think what's very powerful about what we're about to see it's the first time we're going to see the queen's coffin with the royal standard over it, you will see the hearse come out of the gates and there will be a royal salute. just to give you an insight what it must be like inside balmoral castle now, as richard said, this was her favorite home. there is some poetry to this. everyone i've spoken to who has worked for her said this is perfect. she welcomed her final prime minister and then she passed away at balmoral which would have been her wish. she was incredibly close to those members of staff there and this is a very poignant moment for them. so she's leaving the place that she died, but it's a long, long journey home, a long journey away from her final resting

place, which will be windsor which is where she will be laid to rest a week on monday. but i think what you're going to see today is some really powerful imagery of this hearse weaving through the magnificent scottish countryside and villages and towns and through the city of aberdeen. you're going to see people out on the streets just looking and being part of this moment of history. we have got cameras all along the route, there is a helicopter as well which will show aerial views but for some of the most poignant moments the helicopter is going to pull away and the reason we're doing that is so that the sound of helicopter isn't interrupting people and their moment with the former monarch. so through the towns you will see the helicopter pulling away and this is really an emphasis that whilst the media is important, the world needs to see this, this is an also an important pemoment for the peop of scotland to have their moment with the queen.

>> you can plan everything meticulously but you can't plan how many people will show up, how they will react. as richard said there were so many people coming up to pay respects to princess di when she passed and her funeral, throwing flowers at the car and it slowed it down for a bit. we're thinking it could take six hours, it could take much longer. this will be for the people here in scotland. >> indeed. i would be very surprised if people didn't come with flowers to strew in her wake. i think that's probably very likely to happen. if any of the evidence from buckingham palace, balmoral, windsor castle where mower tans of flowers have been laid over the last several days is anything to go on. richard said that scotland played a huge part in her own personal life n her own affection. it also plays a huge part in the idea of the monarchy and i think that was highlighted during king charles' accession, the formal accession yesterday when one of the formal proclamations that he

signed was to respect the scottish church. scotland plays a huge part in this united kingdom not just in her personal life. i think the world of course is watching and perhaps president macron of france summed it up almost perfectly when he said, you know, to you she was your queen, to us she was the queen, to all of us she will be with all of us forever. and i think that was really what the world is thinking about right now. the queen, i think, right now, the way the affection, the way the mourning, the grief, but also the calm -- really the calm succession and the proceeding with the constitutional, you know, change that's happening as it should, i think it's so much about her personally. maybe less about the monarchy. obviously the monarchy is there in the background, it is this amazing symbol, it is -- it is, though, very much about her, the queen herself. and i find it interesting today, it's a sunday, obviously, in the christian faith, a day of

worship, the sabbath of the christian faith, and there's been so much said about her on the radio today about how not only she was a woman of great personal faith and she was formerly the head of the church of england as is her heir king charles. it wasn't about an exclusive religion it was about the protestant church welcoming all the we religions in. we heard so many comments on the radio and tv today from members of the muslim faith here, members of the different indian haits it's faiths like hinduism and sikhism. we heard from the jewish community that she reached out and welcomed as head of the aingely can church other faiths. they believe that king charles will continue that tradition as well. >> that was part of her service as queen, the promise that she made when she was crowned.

richard, you know, christiane just mentioned president macron of france, but we know the funeral will take place on september 19th, eight days from now. president biden is going to attend. what do you expect in terms of world leaders paying their respects to the queen? >> the event is going to be on a scale that we've never seen the like of before. the moment you've got the u.s. president coming, it elevates it because now other leaders -- i'm not being -- when i say this, major funerals there's a huge element of diplomacy about it. you look at who else is going, who is not going, you want to have a match -- you want to have a match of the various people. so i would say we know that putin is not coming, that's not a surprise. >> we're hearing that -- >> i beg your pardon. >> there's movement now. they're preparing to go in, i believe the coffin is in the back of the hearse. >> here we have the coffin which

is being moved from the state dining room through the small dining room and now it's leaving balmoral. as it starts the six-hour jou journey. >> from balmoral. >> minister from crathey church, the scottish standard is laid across the coffin. >> and, again, as you said, richard, this normally only takes a few hours to travel from balmoral to here in edinburgh but it's going to take six hours because they want people to have as much time with the queen as possible. she's going to be going through aberdeen, the coffin is going to go through ballater and the coffin will travel to the city of aberdeen at 6:00 a.m. eastern time in the united states and then through the city of dundee as well. again, going slowly so that people can get the chance to pay their final respects to the

queen. >> one of the comments from yesterday's briefing was that the queen since she passed had been lying at rest in the ballroom at balmoral castle which they described as a scene of great dignity. now after six of the gatekeepers carried the coffin to the hearse, it will -- they're describing this movement, by the way, don, as being -- it will drive in a manner that will allow people to witness the move. so that suggests it will go faster on motor ways and interstates, it will slow down dramatically in towns and villages. >> max foster, i want to bring you in. i've been watching in scotland overnight there have been rehe rehearsals, they have been practicing, they have been practicing for days and, you know, just from the images that were up from the news broadcasts you sort of got an idea of how they will handle the situation once it is here in edinburgh, but, again, highly practiced and

they have been going through it since the queen's death and as a matter of fact they were doing it last night. so, again, gives you an idea of what is going to happen. can you take us through what is planned here once the queen arrives in edinburgh? >> yeah, i just want to say on that point, don, we were talking about it yesterday how everything is to the minute to the plans that were outlined and signed off by the queen. there was an opportunity for the king to adjust these plans because he had to sign them off before they were actually put into place after the queen's death but actually everything here literally to the minute is, you know, matching all of the notes that i was given before the queen's death. so what we have here is an unfolding of events which is exactly as the queen wanted it. so that's quite moving. i was also quite moved just to see the queen's coffin there on her own, very solitary. so in that cortege there's police in the front and back and in the car behind the back is the minister of crathey church

which is the church where the queen would go and pray. so the minister from that church is the only person accompanying the coffin on this very long lonely journey to edinburgh. when the coffin gets to edinburgh it will be laid to rest at the palace of holyrood and it will rest there overnight to allow staff there to pay their respects and then the king will arrive tomorrow and he will really lead events and then we will have that service later on and there will be a very emotional, i think, procession from the palace of holyrood down to st. charles cathedral and there will be a vigil for the people of scotland to pay their respects and look at -- this is scotland. you know, there are huge areas where there are no people living and this weaving through feeling lonely but then you're going to see all the people come out as the cortege goes through the towns.

you will notice where christiane and i are sitting actually the king is holding audiences today with commonwealth -- commonwealth ambassadors and the head of the commonwealth. that's all behind closed doors. he's stepping back today. so yesterday was all about the new king as he was proclaimed, you saw how the flags went to full-staff on the day which reflected him. still are full-staff but a lit later today you will see the flags come to half-staff around the united kingdom and that's to reflect today is about the queen. this is the alt nation you will see over the next few days. a day about the queen, late queen and then a day looking forward to the future monarchy. but today with this moment we're seeing unfold before us is very much about queen elizabeth ii. >> and it really -- it reminds me of the -- sort of the mantra that she had throughout her monarchy. they have to see it to believe it. she was really the monarch who really began the idea of highly

visual reflections of what they were doing and she had to sign off on the first ever televised coronation, for instance. we read that it wasn't something she thought she wanted to do because it was a very -- it is a very sacred oath to not just the people, but to the church, but she agreed in the end to televise the coronation back in 1953 and fast forward to today -- well, yesterday, the accession, you know, king charles agreed to make that public. it had never been public before. tv and radio had not been inside that ceremony before and now it is. now even in death, her vision of legitimacy, it has to be -- we have to be seen to be believed. it has to be seen to be believed, is taking place, you know, in front of our eyes now, in front of more importantly the eyes of the people of this united kingdom. >> and we are watching the images now of the queen, her

body being driven through scotland, the country side of scotland now making its way here to edinburgh. richard, go ahead. >> what i noticed from these pictures that we're looking at from the helicopter, obviously the dignified pace upon which the cortege is moving, but just the beautiful scenery. just look at it, don. this is some of the united kingdom's most glorious landscapes, highlands, low lands of scotland. this is why the royal family adored spending six -- the queen used to spend seven weeks a year here because this was where she felt happiest, the queen mother used to go fly fishing, of course. there are various other homes, the castle of may, burkel, a lot of other places that are all on the same balmoral estate. >> this is her happy place. >> oh, absolutely. >> but, you know, in recent -- >> and if you look at the -- if you look at the recent home movies that have been released

of the queen in the younger years, they are all of them rolling down the hill at balmoral. playing with the children at balmoral. picnics at balmoral. >> in a moment of complete transparency i haven't had much sleep since i've been here and partly it's my fault because i stayed up all night watching the images of remembering the queen on every station here. i watched the beautiful images last night of her time as a child and then meeting prince philip and the marriage, the coronation, it's just beautiful. this was actually the family's happy place as well. >> completely. >> she made it that. >> completely. what's going to be interesting, the road that they are on at the moment from balmoral, the first really big place will be aberdeen. >> right. >> it will take about an hour, hour and a half to get to aberdeen. remember, that's where the royals flew into on their way here, it's an hour-long drive, so a couple of hours, hour and a half to aberdeen and that will be the first big moment to see how many people come out on to the streets to pay their respects. >> max foster, will we see any of the members of the royal

family or scottish royals or british royals today? >> i don't think we will, potentially back here in london, but they want all the focus to be on scotland today. over the course of the next few days you're going to see all the nations of the united kingdom being given attention effectively today and tomorrow is all about scotland. later on next week it will be about wales, there will also be a moment for northern ireland as well. these are the nations of the united kingdom at the very center of what the king's work will be. also very clear message that this is a united kingdom and this is when scotland is interesting, right, because there is a big campaign led by the first minister to break scotland away from the united kingdom and, you know, when we talk about the queen never getting involved in politics there was a moment just before the scottish independence referendum where she did actually get involved and this is the only time i can really think of where she got involved

and just to describe what happened, don, this is all optics and mirrors, but she came out of the church up at balmoral and spoke to a member of the public outside and she simply said i hope people weigh this decision carefully. i can't remember the exact word, but to think really carefully about what they're going to do in this independence referendum. that was the -- the way is works is we always go to people that the queen has spoken to and ask them what she said. they knew that we would get that information. actually politicians here in the uk would argue that that did affect people's decision about whether or not they chose scottish independence or being part of the united kingdom. the king will, i'm sure, want scotland to remain part of the united kingdom although officially he will say it's a decision for scotland. he is the king of scotland, it's a different nation, it has its own identity, it's own culture and that's very well-respected and they have their own titles

as well when they are in scotland, but this is about scotland and showing that they are very much a part of the previous monarchy but also the new monarchy, we will see that reflected when the king comes up to scotland tomorrow. >> six-hour journey to the scottish capital here. christiane amanpour, you were talking about how long this journey is going to take and richard mentioned that, you know, as they are in areas that are less populated it will be faster, but then when they get to more populated areas, dundee, aberdeen and so forth, we should expect to start seeing people who are making their way to this route, to the procession, just to watch and pay their respects. >> indeed, don. and as everybody watches it, either in real life if they can get there or on the television because as we are doing it's wall to wall on obviously all the british tvs and elsewhere,

it's very meditate testify. it's a very meditative moment. it's the queen's car, it has the coffin, the scottish standard, a lovely wreath of white flowers on top, it's really simple. we are not going to see that all the time, we are going to see these aerials for most of the time. it's med day testify and a time to potentially think and remember most of all what she has meant. remember that i think the statistic is something like 80% of british people alive have only known this one queen on the throne, that the world which is really such a young population in so many parts of the world has only known this one queen and that for great britain, the united kingdom of great britain and northern ireland, she -- her, she the person, remained the glue that held it together and over the last few years there has been as max alluded to

much talk and thought about political sort of nationalism amongst the constituent parts of the united kingdom. scotland is the most, you know, out there, but northern ireland as well. and i think, again, recalling what she did in northern ireland is an amazing thing to remember because she also talked about her faith, about the church, not just being a matter of peace, of faith, but also, you know, to be able to bring peace in this world. so that she really put to good use many observers say when she took the courageous decision to go to northern ireland and meet with marty mcginnis and the northern ireland nationalist leaders who were part of then the good friday agreement, remembering that they first before becoming political leaders were members of the ira, which certainly in great britain was termed a terrorist

organization. but sheo overcame all that when they became a legitimate political organization and many to this day remember that incredible step she took to shake that hand, with a huge flashing smile, not under duress, but willingly. we really should remember that because peace is only waged by being able to understand your enemy in the end, by being willing to reach across that divide and make friends as i think it was the great israeli prime minister ravine said you don't make peace with your friends you make peace with your enemies. this was something that she was very much devoted to and, you know, acted upon, showed. she was the example of that. >> the first part where we will see people is going to be ballater and there are images we will see soon of ballater where

they're going to stop -- not stop, but go through first. >> one of the interesting things, don, if i can just say -- >> go for it. >> this talk of independence in scotland, the first minister and indeed the snp have made clear that in the event of independence of scotland, the queen -- the king would remain head of state so become a realm in other countries. they've taken away this idea that people might have not wanted to lose the monarchy by saying, no, there would be still the monarch, it would still be king charles iii, but he would only be the king of scotland for them, not the king of the united kingdom. so the independence thing is a very interesting question for king charles as he navigates the best way forward should that become a real issue in the next five years. >> christiane was talking moments ago about the reason we are paying so much attention to scotland, obviously this is where she died, but why

holyroodhouse? why edinburgh first? what's the significance of that? >> capitalist scotland it's the seat of government, behind us is the parliament, where the first minister is. this is the palace where the queen will come every july and hold -- have a week of official events including some very large garden parties here. i've actually been in the palace of holyroodhouse, it's kept very traditional, the queen's rooms are extremely ordinary. two bar electric fires, if you will. there's no fuss and grandeur when the queen is in scotland because it's their home. ballater, i asked the taxi driver this morning is it ballater or ballater and he said it doesn't matter, we use both. if anybody is going to take me to task, the taxi driver says ballater or ballater is acceptable. >> ballater or ballater. max foster, speak to us about ballater here. this is where we will start to

see the crowds and the people coming out to pay their respects and honor the late queen. >> yeah, i just wanted -- you asked me earlier if we will see a member of the royal family today, i'm being told that we will see a member of the royal family in the reception at the palace of holyrood, there will be a royal salute when the coffin arrives there. i'm not quite here who that will be, i imagine it will be anne. >> i was going to say because she was there the whole time, princess anne. >> she's going to accompany the coffin back to london as well. ballater is the first place we're going to get -- the public will have a chance to see the coffin. this is an incredibly powerful moment. i think to be respectful we should just listen in for a moment because the whole point of this entire exercise is to allow local people to have their moment with the queen.

the queen's coffin is driving now through the scottish village of ballater, it's now passing through that village now, a cortege of seven weeks accompanying queen elizabeth's coffin on its journey to the palace of holyroodhouse at edinburgh where richard quest and i are. i want to bring in isa soares. you were just in ballet ster. what can you tell us? >> reporter: yeah. for many people, don, as we look at these images this very solemn moment of course for many people the queen wasn't just a month gnashing, she was also a neighbor and i think what i have seen in the last kind of two

days is really much a somber mood, not just in ballater, but balmoral. ballater is 15 minutes or so away from balmoral. it is beautiful, highlands, just perfect surrounding. of course, one of the queen's favorite residence since she was a little girl of course. for many of the neighbors i've spoken to they remember her, they know -- they remember bumping into her, she walked her corgis, they saw her driving her land recoover. she went to the local butcher shop, the butcher told me she was one of us, so normal, so herself, the same thing he said about king charles. for many of the people we saw there bowing their heads, taking the time to reflect really on this monarch and the service, the last 70 years, this incredible poignant time for them. i haven't seen when i was up in balmoral and at ballater the

jubilation that you have been seeing and richard and christiane and max outside buckingham palace. it's very much been very somber. people wanting to take the time, don, to reflect on the queen's last 70 years because, of course, they had that connection with her. they bumped into her as she walked along the highlands. they saw her over the last years, including when there was a bit of flood around the area a couple years ago, she got involved as well. so very much part of the community. she went to the church, was part of the congregation just down the road. so for many people she means so much more than just a month gnashing. this is really a time for them to reflect and also pay their final reflects and final farewell to a monarch they have loved for so long and so deeply, don. >> richard quest? >> there was a documentary made, prince philip led, it was called "the royal family" 1969, it was

the first time that the cameras had been allowed in -- the idea was show the monarchy, show the queen, show the family. highly controversial, but much of the most famous part of that film was shot at balmoral. that's the bit where you see philip barbecuing sausages, where you see them fly fishing, where you see the queen opening and closing tubber ware. in fact, the between -- the royal family hated it afterwards, it's only been shown twice. it points to the fact that balmoral was the place -- christmas, the palace is the office, windsor is where you live on state occasions but balmoral is hole days, vacation, summer home. >> family. max foster, listening to the folks this morning here in edinburgh, also ballater, there

were folks speaking as well as balmoral, she was very much part of the community and quite sadly they said that they became concerned because she would be out and about and people would see her, but this time recently that did not happen, so they knew something had changed, something was different. >> yeah, that was really how we got so nervous, wasn't it, a few days ago when just ahead of the death everything went quiet. this is something we expected would happen when the inevitable news was about to be delivered. it speaks to the fact, doesn't t don, that we're so used to seeing her, when she doesn't appear it's unsettling. that's the bigger issue we are going to have going forward when we have more problems, going to have a tough time in the united kingdom and the queen won't be there to steady up. boris johnson brought letter in at the height of the pandemic to steady the nation and she effectively -- and she did that very effectively. looking at those images of ballater, i wasn't going to mention this but as we saw it on

the camera i can, i think. what you're seeing now is just the essential cortege as it were, the much longer one following, a whole backup cortege, with he saw that backup hearse there as well, there's even a backup military bearer party as well just in case something happens mechanically to the front of the cortege. it's fascinating to me to see all of these plans are being briefed on for years. you know, coming into a reality and it's working impeccably. it's quite amazing. >> it really is. i think what struck me is she went through the village where people were the first time, it was solemn and it was quiet. you know, there was no wailing and gnashing of teeth. it's been a solemn reflection on her, respectful. you saw all the dignitaries lined up from the church, from the military, you saw them stand in front of the war memorial in the village of ballater, everybody at attention and the civilians, the citizens, the residents of that village very

quiet as they watched her pass for the last time. for the last time. they will never see this again even though she was part of their lives as you say for so long. it's so interesting to hear what people are saying because we've just been talking about scotland and how they have a fierce -- certainly a big percentage of them -- desire for independence and yet all the quotes that you see from people now in the aftermath of the queen's death say, look, yes, but this is about the queen and she transcends politics. we've heard the same today from the vice president in northern ireland, the queen was somebody who was -- she transcended politics. she had a role that was just so completely above that fray and that's why this is about her and it's not just about the monarchy, although the pageantry and the choreography is playing out as you agree for so many

years and as we expect it to be. again, you keep thinking and going back to that statement that she made on her 21st birthday in south africa, in cape town, on a visit with her parents to the commonwealth in which she said my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service, and that we are seeing now the people paying tribute and thanks for that. >> she always referred back to that speech and that was basically where she outlined her strategy at the age of 21 which she lived to right to the unend >> as a citizen or as a subject as the brits are called she said i cannot do this without your support. all of this that i pledged to you i cannot do without your support. from the beginning she nailed her mast to the british people and, yes, there were just a couple of scumtumbles but she k that role, fulfilled that role and in bell moral that last

picture of her smiling broadly standing with the aid of a cane but nonetheless 36, 48 hours before she died that's what she spoke. >> sorry, don, i know -- i just want -- on that, the photographer that took those pictures, the big smile, looking right into the cam ration that was just before the prime minister came in and the photographer spoke about how she was in such good spirits, don. >> and working right until the end. i just want to bring us to the moment here because i'm sure people as i am watching, this is breathtaking, the images are breathtaking, the country side is beautiful. you can see, richard, why she loved spending time here in scotland. it's just to watch this -- >> the whole thing is going to be a series of waves leading to a crescendo next week. we have this moment of going to edinburgh and then the lying in rest here, then we're going to have the body taken to london,

it will be flown to london, then it will lie in state at westminster hall where we expect hundreds of thousands of people will want to pay their respects, all leading up to a week on monday which is the funeral. i mean, you know, world leader terms, we won't have seen anything like this in our lifetimes. >> listening to christiane moments ago, i didn't want to interrupt because there is a delay and speak over her but i think she brings up a great point that there hasn't been this gnashing and wailing because as christiane pointed out a couple days ago she's 96 years old. we don't know exactly the cause, but, you know, she's older. it didn't come as a complete shock because she had lived a long and beautiful life of service. it wasn't the shock and the suddenenness that happened with diana. >> i think that we can say her death is not tragic. >> right. >> this is the natural course of

events. you get old and you pass on. unfortunately in this case it's somebody that meant so much to so many people and was so integral, the glue that held so much together on a national basis, but the role that she played has now been handed -- it's also crucial -- this is not a soap opera or drama, this is part of britain. this is our fabric, and the number one thing the queen would have wanted is dignified constitutional transition. >> that's what she's getting. >> and that's the key and you're seeing it -- max put it beautifully, the planning, the meticulous nature, we are seeing it play out exactly as intended and importantly as meant to. so you have -- remember my -- yesterday i was talking about two sides of the came coins. >> right. >> yesterday we celebrated the new reign of king charles iii, today we have the sorrow and sadness as we watch his mother's coffin. >> max, the queen's funeral and the events leading up to it have

really been in the works for years now and as you mentioned before, even the backup has a backup. nothing will go wrong or at least because of the planning nothing should go wrong when it comes to this. >> max foster? i'm not sure if you heard me. >> you can see here where we are at buckingham palace, in fact, you can hear maybe the clip clop of horses. this is the ceremonial royal guard, the calvary, the household calvary which are going back and forth starting a trumpet flare right now. i'm not sure exactly what that is about or is it practice, but nonetheless here in buckingham palace way, way, way south of where the queen's cortege is winding through the scottish territory is what we're seeing

here. don, again, you know, there's so many questions that are going to be asked in the future, in the early days of king charles' reign about how you keep the united kingdom together and also about how you keep the commonwealth together and about what happens if more countries want to spin off to independence. again, it's worth remembering that the queen herself, queen elizabeth was, again, front and center of that debate. she welcomed members of the commonwealth that had sought independence, it's not like she put up, you know, for want of a better word a berlin wall between herself as sovereign and those who had taken their independence and become sovereign while remaining part of the commonwealth. she welcomed that. she wasn't -- it wasn't an -- her. when everyone starts looking at what might happen to the commonwealth because let's face it what we are seeing is one of the last -- well, the last great

monarch of centuries of great britain and northern ireland, but -- but -- but presiding not over an enlarged and enlarging nation, but one that is shrinking. and that is going to be the big challenge for this country and for the king. how does this country continue to do what it's done over the decades and that is always punch above its weight, no matter how physically small, punch above its weight in every -- in every circumstance and that's going to be the challenge for the next set of politicians and the monarch. >> i think that that is the sentiment among people, what will happen next? what will a king charles reign be like? >> so there are two aspects, there's the certain and the uncertain. the certain is that he becomes king, which is what has happened. he takes over the reins of

sovereignty and we start a new era, the era of king charles. the uncertain bit of course is the significant part which is we don't know how he will govern. will he not interfere? he says he won't be the meddler as he was always claimed to be. he says he recognizes his new duty with a constitutional parliamentary democracy. well, we will see. for the moment i tell you what i am hearing a lot more of. >> what are you hearing? >> i'm hearing a lot more ground swell of support for charles. everybody i asked i want charlie boy to do well. let's face it, he's been part of our public life for as long as the queen, so prince of wales in 1970 as i watched the invest tour, so there is a real element of we want him to do well. >> i want to bring in now cnn royal historian kate williams to join us in this conversation as we watch the cortege of the late

queen. these plans have been in the works for the funeral and the events leading up to it for years. there is a backup to the backup as max foster pointed out. this is the queen's final journey and they want to make sure everything is perfect, everything is in order. >> yes, don, this is the queen's final journey as she goes to edinburgh and then will finally come to london to lay in state on wednesday, we are expecting more than a million people i would say that's a conservative estimate, probably millions of people will be queueing up to see her. we have had so many pomp over the last few days, the mechanisms of royalty and it reminds us looking at the coffin in the car how the queen, the monarchy, this huge institution, it was this one lady, this one person who is here in her final journey. i'm so moved looking at these pictures as she passes through

the wonderful scenery of scotland, the place she loved so much. of course, we have never had a monarch of britain and scotland passed away in scotland. we had a joint monarchy from 1601 when elizabeth i died and james i became king of england of scotland, in 1707 we were a country, joined england, scotland, wales and the united kingdom as you've been discussing, we may see a change of that, a scottish referendum, may be scottish independent and the new monarch would be head of a different independent nation. she got engaged in balmoral, loved balmoral, it was so important to her. in the final -- the final days of her illness there, and these moments reminding us that she was the monarchy, she was an institution, but she was also much beloved by her children, by her grandchildren, by his great-grandchildren and by the people of scotland. that real emotion we saw of her

going through ballater and what we will see going blew edinburgh these are historic pictures, a moment in history and really a recognition of the queen's deep, deep connection with scotland. >> max foster, as the royal correspondent here on cnn obviously this is what you do. family was so important to the queen and yesterday we saw -- we had a moment with the two sons, william and harry and their wives, unexpected, but it gives us an indication i'm wondering if you believe so what the future might be for the mona monarchy. >> max did not hear. richard, do you want to respond to that? >> yes. i mean, it was very important. it was a significant moment. do i think that it put everything to rights?

no, i don't. do i think that they did what they had to do to get rid of a very ugly scene or saw, absolutely. being together was a -- of sorts but we've still got harry's book to come later this year, we still have a slue of other incidents. we've still got the recent interview that the duchess did. so i think did it put things to rest? temporarily, why he. >> my question was that the queen would be happy to see them. >> the queen adored harry. she said it -- remember, we heard her talk about harry numerous times. so, yes, absolutely. they have done exactly what the queen would have wished. firm first, family put on a good show. >> max foster? >> yeah, just to update you on who is in the cortege, the palace has let us know there is a member of the royal family, there is the princess royal,

princess anne, also her husband sir tim lawrence. the minister of the krathie church at balmoral. some detail on the flowers as well. the royal standard draped over the coffin, the royal standard can't fly above the queen anymore because the monarch is obviously now king but the tradition is that the standard can remain on the coffin until the queen is laid to rest. you will also see that when she comes to westminster hall and you will see items of crown jewels as well on the coffin by the time it gets to london. on the flowers at the moment we have sweet peas, one of the queen's favorite flowers, that's a touching sort of moment there really. you know, when we talk about the levels of detail, this has been planned to, even these details and even these details were signed off by the queen. also white heather, which is obviously a reflection of the

nation of scotland, and fine fir -- pine fir, what am i talking about? we have he' seen this cortege weaving through the pine forest of scotland, as well as the lakes and she has had that reflected as well in the flowers. i wonder, we will probably have different flowers when the coffin comes to england. >> for sure. this we understand we were told it's according to operation london bridge are flowers that were collected and created from -- from the estate of balmoral. so, again, it's all very pers personal. >> there is still business to be had of such, max foster, i don't know if you can hear me. king charles is going to hold audiences with religious and commonwealth leaders today. >> he is. so there's a series of meetings in the palace and this is commonwealth day for her in a way, before all of those leaders fly in for the funeral.

so this is what we received, you know, at 2:00 this afternoon, which is 9:00 a.m. eastern, the king will receive the secretary general of the commonwealth here in the 1844 room in buckingham palace behind me, and the king will attend a reception of realm high commissioners, so these are the ambassadors from the realms, the likes of, you know, australia, canada, jamaica, belize. there also a reception in the bow room at buckingham palace and they will be able to express their condolences to the king and also discuss, you know, his forthcoming monarchy as well. a bit later on the dean of windsor will visit as well. the dean of windsor will be central to the laying to rest of the queen's coffin at windsor. so after westminster abbey the coffin will be driven in a procession to windsor, laid to rest at windsor in the chapel there. there's a chapel to the side, so you will remember, don, from harry and meghan's wedding, the church at windsor just to the

left there is a small chapel where the queen's mother and father are buried and spots have been reserved next to them for the queen and indeed prince philip. prince philip currenting resting in a vault underneath the chapel, basically a set of shafls dare i say that's how it looks with other kings and queens. the coffin will be brought up from the basement there and buried alongside the queen. so there's something quite poetic about the fact the queen will be returning to her parent and phillip, the three people closest to her. >> indeed. >> and margaret is buried there as well. >> sort of another ps but it's also so important to remember as you say it's commonwealth day, king charles is talking to presumably barronness scotland the administrative head of the commonwealth and will be discussing what's next. there are some amazing pictures, i don't know whether we have access to them, but this incredible site of queen

elizabeth dancing with one of the great african liberation leaders, becoming the first independent president of ghana. she dancing with him with her crown and, you know, the sash. it was just amazing because she gave the image and the message, whether it was with words or whether it was with body language, you know, dancing or whatever, that this was okay. this conversation is not over and many people want to have this conversation still, but she set a really interesting example. the great historian simon chalmers has been writing about her legacy and reminds us she used her broadcast, christmas broadcast in 1983 to insist, quote, you know, the terrible inequity, the big affliction as they put it of the modern world was that huge gulf between developed and undeveloped countries.

she put her, you know, finger on that issue knowing what it was all about, being the title head of the commonwealth. it's really very interesting particularly when she had -- remember south africa was apartheid south africa was a pariah all through the '80s, through the prime ministership of margaret thatcher. finally when she apparently supported the sanctions. now, i don't know whether this is true but she did, certainly the government at the time did not, the sanctions against apartheid south africa but certainly she had invited, you know, nelson mandella as president, the first president of majority rule south africa, the first black president of that nation, and to this day until he died he spoke about what an amazing trip it was. if i'm not sure he either just straight out talked to her as elizabeth or it was lilly bet, but there were no niceties. there was a politeness and respect but he really felt that

he had a big connection with her. >> the king will be meeting, christiane, in buckingham palace with the high commissioners from the realms. if we look at who is there, you know, on my travels trying to sort of figure out which countries are more likely to, you know, reconsider their position as realms going forward, you have canada, i think new zealand, those high commissions will be there, i don't think there's any big debates there be removing the queen as head of state. certainly in quebec when i was there there is a massive republican movement but across canada i think they are referential. when it's described to me we have something the americans haven't got, they're obsessed with the royal family, that's their view. listen to the other high kmesh nurse that will be there, i think there are i think gates, antigua, barbuda, bahamas, grenada. >> jamaica. >> st. christopher. st. lush i can't, st. vincent and the grenadines.

i think there's growing republican movements in all of those nations. >> she did set the standard, she set the example that even as head of the commonwealth she didn't consider those who wanted independence to be somehow, you know, naughty children. she considered it absolutely fine and she welcomed them and she continued, you know, that relationship. that is going to be very interesting to see as more and more countries want to be their own sovereign countries, but maybe still have this important loose relationship with the commonwealth and with the united kingdom. that will be -- that will be interesting to see but it's up to them, both king now before prince charles said that, prince william said it, now prince of wales. it's essentially up to them and whether the eu and whether they want to have some kind of loose alliance. >> and christiane, i want to remind the viewers who are watching this is the queen's time journey here, the cortege making its way to edinburgh where they will be here for

days -- for a couple of days and then people will at least overnight and people can pay their respects to her. we've been talking about every detail that has been planned. max, i think it's interesting because this is all -- the queen -- these were her decisions, the type of coffin, the type of flowers, exactly what we're seeing today is exactly as she had planned it. >> this is exactly what the queen would have wanted. i mean, as the plans unfold they're being -- they're being officially announced by the palace but we've seen a broad sense of the plans before this and actually they're matching exactly what the queen wanted. of course they also match what the king wanted because he signed off on this whole period of mourning and everything involved in it and there's so much to reflect here and this is all as we discussed about scotland and also the queen's relationship about scotland, that will be very much reflected where you are, don, when we see the service and the vigil at st.

giles' cathedral. i think a really poignant moment when the cortege arrives in edinburgh, there will be this magnificent scene, frankly, of the cortege moving through edinburgh which is a beautiful city and i understand we're going to have this unbelievable sort of wide shot of the cortege moving into the capital of scotland and into the palace of holyrood and there will be a guard of honor that it will be silent. i think that will be really poignant. we also know that when the coffin comes back to london it will rest for a night in buckingham palace, the procession from the palace to westminster hall will also be silent and the royal family will be walking behind the coffin. this is somber, but it's -- how would you describe it? >> respectful. it's respectful. it's a moment. they've lost their mother, the country has lost the matriarch. it's a really respectful moment for everybody just to reflect, to mourn, to consider, and to

that end i want to ask you, max, because the plan was called operation london bridge. the plan when her father died was called operation hyde park. it's been written that london bridge signifies a much more dramatic end because of 70 years on the throne, london bridge coming down is a -- figuratively a dramatic statement. i want to know whether you know because it was apparently the private sector, the queen's private sector's duty when she died to send the message london bridge is down. >> i think that's -- i don't know. it's a good headline, isn't it. i don't think london bridge is down, was that the phrase? >> yes. >> i'm getting a nod from another royal commentator, it was the phrase. i mean, what's interesting as well -- >> i want to know was that given, prince, to the prime minister? do we know the exact hour that she died? >> we will find out in time. the prime minister would have i'm sure been informed

straightaway, that would have been a priority. prince philip's code name was forth bridge, he was the duke of edinburgh and forth bridge is the famous bridge in scotland. >> it's interesting. it's really interesting the way they plan it meticulously with their code name, years the planning. >> the other thing is that each element of this london bridge has a code name as well. so this will have a code name as well, this procession, to edinburgh. you can see the people lining up there. these are isolated parts of scotland, not -- but, you know, to me it feels like everyone is coming out. there are people all along the route. when you consider how many people live along this route, apart from the major sort of towns and aberdeen obviously later on, there's huge amounts of people who live there but the streets seem relatively full. >> max and don, it reminds me a little bit the last great long procession of a coffin that i remember the pictures of, not the actual reality, was in 1968

when robert kennedy's coffin was carried by special train from new york to washington to lie, again, at ceremony at cathedral in washington. the pictures from that time, they were still pictures mostly and actually you needed to see them from inside the train the faces of the people bidding farewell to then senator robert kennedy who was assassinated, he was running to be president in 1968 and, you know, his brother the president, john kennedy, had been assassinated just seven years before, and this -- this imagery of this leader who was making his last journey at that time just like the queen is making her last journey past her people and the faces on all those people who turned out will be there for the ages. i wonder if there are cameras in the cortege or some people able to capture those close-ups as well because that is for the ages. >> i want everyone to stand by

here. this is the beginning of the final journey of her majesty queen elizabeth ii. you're watching cnn. we will be right back.

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