A thin white staff or "wand" is the traditional emblem of certain Great Officers of State and high-ranking officials of the Royal Household in the United Kingdom, namely: Great Officers of State: The Lord High Steward. The Lord Great Chamberlain.
The Wand of Office is a thin, white staff and ceremonial tool that was once used to provide discipline to courtiers. If they were too noisy, the Lord Chamberlain would warn them to behave with a tap.
The Wand of Office is ceremonially broken at a monarch's funeral and it signifies the end of the Lord Chamberlain's service to the Queen as sovereign. The ceremonial gesture dates back centuries, last performed more than 70 years ago when the Earl of Clarendon broke his staff over the grave of George VI.
A thin, white staff, it is believed the wand of office was once used to discipline courtiers who were being to rowdy. The Lord Chamberlain would tap them with the wand as a warning to behave.
The breaking of the wand of office is a ceremonial tradition which brings to an end the sovereign of a monarch. For Queen Elizabeth II, the wand will be broken and then placed on the late monarch's coffin.
Lord chamberlain breaks wand of office and places it on Queen's coffin
What is carrying the Queen's coffin?
Indeed, the unit was on the ground in Iraq at the time of the Queen's death, and was recalled at once to fulfil its traditional duty. Pallbearers from Queen's Company, 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards carry Queen Elizabeth II's coffin, draped in the Royal Standard, into St George's Chapel.
During the ceremony, the reigning monarch is formally crowned and given regalia. Dating back to 1661, the Orb — a gold globe featuring a cross — is intended to symbolize that the monarch's power comes from God. The Sceptre, created for Charles II, has been used at every coronation since 1661.
Also known as the “breaking of the stick”, the action marks the end of the lord chamberlain's service to the monarch. King Charles will duly appoint a lord chamberlain of his own, who will receive a new wand of office.
What is the white stick broken over the king's coffin?
'Breaking the stick' or 'breaking the wand' is the final symbolic act to take place at a British monarch's funeral, signifying the official end of the Lord Chamberlain's service to the King or Queen.
The Lords with White Staves (namely the Lord Steward and Lord Chamberlain) are traditionally responsible for presenting addresses from the House of Lords to the Sovereign, and then delivering the Sovereign's response to the House.
The wand is a phallic symbol and thus is representative of masculine energy, power, and virility. Depending on your tradition, the wand is generally associated with either fire or air.
Harry's wand is embedded by phoenix feather core, and constructed by holly wood. It is eleven inches long. The phoenix feather core in Harry's wand is a symbol of rebirth and immortality. These symbols of the phoenix feather core are influenced by the mythology of phoenix.
The Elder Wand is represented by the straight vertical line, the Resurrection Stone by the circle surrounding it, and finally a triangle enclosing them both to represent the Cloak of Invisibility.
What is the breaking of the staff at the Queen's funeral?
The Lord Chamberlain — Lord Parker of Minsmere, who once served as head of MI5 — took part in the ceremonial breaking of the wand to signify the end of his service to the Queen as sovereign. The wand was then placed above the Queen's coffin and will be buried with the monarch.
While it is likely that secretaries, housekeepers, chefs, chauffeurs, gardeners etc. will be kept on, some of the queen's more personal staff may be made redundant or choose to leave the household voluntarily, such as her footmen and dressers.
Royal Navy sailors have the honour of pulling the State Ceremonial Gun Carriage bearing the Queen's coffin for two miles through the streets of London – a duty they have performed since the funeral of Queen Victoria in 1901.
The horses pulling the carriage were then unharnessed and improvised ropes were attached to the gun carriage so the team of sailors brought could carry the coffin safely for the rest of the route.
Before the Queen's coffin was lowered into the royal vault in St George's Chapel in Windsor Castle, a crown, orb and sceptre were removed. Here's why they were taken off and what they mean.
It is thought the reason behind this is the monarch doesn't want to be the focus of distraction. If the Queen went to a funeral in her official capacity, the attention would be on her and the dozens of security personnel and other attendants who need to accompany her, instead of on the bereaved family.
The orb was kept steady by a small spike on its bottom that fit into a discreet mounting on top of the coffin's oak surface. The crown sat atop a purple pillow, a seemingly precarious spot that was stabilised by a firm protruding section on which the monarch's headwear was mounted.
Her funeral last year culminated in a committal service and private burial at the King George VI Memorial Chapel (part of St George's Chapel in Windsor Castle) in the evening. The Queen was buried alongside her mother, father and sister.
There are strict rules surrounding the crown jewels, and only three people in the world are allowed to touch them: the current monarch (that's now King Charles III), the Archbishop of Canterbury and the crown jeweler. For more than 800 years, the crown jewels have lived in the Tower of London.
These objects represent the responsibilities and governance of the monarch, so their removal separated the Queen from her crown for the final time. The Sovereign's Sceptre with Cross has been used at every coronation since Charles II's in 1661.
On a wreath atop the coffin, a handwritten note read, "In loving and devoted memory," and was signed Charles R — for Rex, or king. Also atop of the coffin was the Imperial State Crown, a 2.3-pound crown worn by the queen after her coronation in 1953.