Queen Elizabeth II, the United Kingdom’s longest-reigning monarch, died on Thursday at the age of 96 at Balmoral, after reigning for 70 years.
Following her passing and the proclamation of Prince Charles as the new King, the UK will see lots of changes.
So, what are some of the changes that we can anticipate? Let’s take a look…
Cash and coins
In the UK, all cash notes and coins depict the face of the Queen – but now following her death, new coins and cash will be created with the face of the King.
Plans have been in place for this for a long time and the new cash will be produced and distributed into general circulation, with the old money gradually being phased out.
It is thought money with the Queen’s face will remain legal tender for a while yet – with a date eventually being set for the future when they can no longer be used.
However, it’s not just in the UK, where the Queen’s face is used on the currency. It is also used in countries, such as Canada, Australia and New Zealand – and they too will eventually phase out cash with her image on.
Stamps
Stamps – similar to cash – also depict an image of the Queen and again new ones will have to be created with the face of the King.
Ones that have a picture of the Queen will be phased out very gradually.
Postboxes
The Queen’s cypher EIIR stood for Elizabeth II Regina – with Regina the Latin for Queen. Rex is the Latin for King.
Across the UK, apart from in Scotland, most postboxes have this cypher across them.
And although after a monarch passes away, postboxes aren’t replaced – any new ones made are likely to feature the cypher chosen by the new King.
Uniforms
The Queen’s cypher appears on many uniforms in the UK including those worn by police officers and the military.
These uniforms will likely be updated over time with the new King’s cypher.
Passports
If you’ve ever checked a UK passport, it will state: “Her Britannic Majesty’s Secretary of State requests and requires in the name of Her Majesty all those whom it may concern to allow the bearer to pass freely without let or hindrance and to afford the bearer such assistance and protection as may be necessary.”
Therefore new passports issued will be tweaked to reflect the male pronouns of the new King.
However, it’s likely that passports will only need to be updated once they have expired.
National Anthem
Now the Queen has died, the national anthem will no longer be God Save the Queen.
Source: Mirror
