The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, adorned with the Royal Standard and the Imperial State Crown is pulled by a gun carriage of The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery during a procession from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster, London, on September 14, 2022. AFP
The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, adorned with the Royal Standard and the Imperial State Crown is pulled by a gun carriage of The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery during a procession from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster, London, on September 14, 2022. AFP
The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, adorned with the Royal Standard and the Imperial State Crown is pulled by a gun carriage of The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery during a procession from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster, London, on September 14, 2022. AFP
The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, adorned with the Royal Standard and the Imperial State Crown is pulled by a gun carriage of The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery during a procession from Buckingham

What is the flag covering Queen Elizabeth's coffin and why's it called the Royal Standard?


Neil Murphy
  • English
  • Arabic

Queen Elizabeth's coffin is draped in the Royal Standard before her funeral service in Westminster Abbey on Monday.

The flag represents the sovereignty of the monarch and is flown only at royal residences while they are present, or on their vehicles as they travel to other locations.

After his mother's death, only the reigning monarch, King Charles III, is allowed use of the flag.

The flag has been draped on the queen's coffin on the catafalque as she lies in state, and placed upon it is the Imperial State Crown, and the sceptre and orb.

It will be removed before her burial in Windsor at 4pm on Monday.

Officially, two versions of the standard exist: one for use in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and other territories, while the other is solely for use in Scotland.

The banner is split into four equal quadrants, each representing three nations of the UK, including Northern Ireland and Scotland.

The three lions passant guardant is the traditional symbol of England and is typically seen in the first and fourth quadrant.

The lion rampant represents Scotland while the harp, the traditional symbol of Ireland, represents Northern Ireland.

Wales does not feature on the flag, because of its constitutional status as a principality. However, standards used by other royals sometimes feature Welsh symbols.

While in Scotland, a variation of the flag is used where the first and third quadrants are replaced with the Scottish lion rampant symbol.

The queen's coffin was draped in this variation as it was taken from her Scottish residence in Balmoral to England before her funeral.

Other members of the royal family have their own variation of the flag, including Prince Harry, whose standard includes a red escallop taken from the arms of the house of Spencer, which his mother Diana belonged to.

Rehearsal at dawn for Queen Elizabeth's funeral - in pictures

EPL's youngest
  • Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal)
    15 years, 181 days old
  • Max Dowman (Arsenal)
    15 years, 235 days old
  • Jeremy Monga (Leicester)
    15 years, 271 days old
  • Harvey Elliott (Fulham)
    16 years, 30 days old
  • Matthew Briggs (Fulham)
    16 years, 68 days old
The specs

AT4 Ultimate, as tested

Engine: 6.2-litre V8

Power: 420hp

Torque: 623Nm

Transmission: 10-speed automatic

Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)

On sale: Now

It's Monty Python's Crashing Rocket Circus

To the theme tune of the famous zany British comedy TV show, SpaceX has shown exactly what can go wrong when you try to land a rocket.

The two minute video posted on YouTube is a compilation of crashes and explosion as the company, created by billionaire Elon Musk, refined the technique of reusable space flight.

SpaceX is able to land its rockets on land  once they have completed the first stage of their mission, and is able to resuse them multiple times - a first for space flight.

But as the video, How Not to Land an Orbital Rocket Booster, demonstrates, it was a case if you fail, try and try again.

COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
%3Cp%3EName%3A%20DarDoc%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20Abu%20Dhabi%3Cbr%3EFounders%3A%20Samer%20Masri%2C%20Keswin%20Suresh%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20HealthTech%3Cbr%3ETotal%20funding%3A%20%24800%2C000%3Cbr%3EInvestors%3A%20Flat6Labs%2C%20angel%20investors%20%2B%20Incubated%20by%20Hub71%2C%20Abu%20Dhabi's%20Department%20of%20Health%3Cbr%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%2010%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs

Price, base / as tested Dh1,100,000 (est)

Engine 5.2-litre V10

Gearbox seven-speed dual clutch

Power 630bhp @ 8,000rpm

Torque 600Nm @ 6,500rpm

Fuel economy, combined 15.7L / 100km (est) 

Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?

The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.

A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.

Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.

The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.

When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.

HOW DO SIM CARD SCAMS WORK?

Sim swap frauds are a form of identity theft.

They involve criminals conning mobile phone operators into issuing them with replacement Sim cards, often by claiming their phone has been lost or stolen 

They use the victim's personal details - obtained through criminal methods - to convince such companies of their identity.

The criminal can then access any online service that requires security codes to be sent to a user's mobile phone, such as banking services.

The specs
  • Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
  • Power: 640hp
  • Torque: 760nm
  • On sale: 2026
  • Price: Not announced yet
Infiniti QX80 specs

Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6

Power: 450hp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000

Available: Now

GAC GS8 Specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh149,900

Specs

Engine: 51.5kW electric motor

Range: 400km

Power: 134bhp

Torque: 175Nm

Price: From Dh98,800

Available: Now

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Biog

Mr Kandhari is legally authorised to conduct marriages in the gurdwara

He has officiated weddings of Sikhs and people of different faiths from Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Russia, the US and Canada

Father of two sons, grandfather of six

Plays golf once a week

Enjoys trying new holiday destinations with his wife and family

Walks for an hour every morning

Completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Loyola College, Chennai, India

2019 is a milestone because he completes 50 years in business

 

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Updated: September 18, 2022, 11:32 AM`