Line for Queen's Lying-in-State Reaches Capacity: 'Do Not Attempt to Join'

British government officials overseeing the lying-in-state operation of the late-Queen Elizabeth II have told members of the public to stop joining the 4.9-mile (7.9km) line stretching from Westminster to Southwark because the park has reached capacity.

The monarch's coffin is currently on display in the oldest part of the Palace of Westminster, the central hub of British politics also home to the houses of Parliament and Big Ben.

Members of the public have been granted a period to show their respects in person to the queen who died aged 96 on September 8, lasting until the morning of her state funeral on Monday September 19.

Since opening on Wednesday thousands have queued for upward of 14 hours to file past the queen's coffin, which stands on a raised purple platform, known as a catafalque.

The coffin is draped with the royal standard and on top sits the Imperial State Crown. The arrangement is guarded by servicemen in ceremonial uniform who take part in a vigil in 20-minute shifts.

Members of the public who have waited in line have been seen bowing and curtseying to the coffin upon reaching it with members of the armed forces offering salutes. The arrangement has seen the opening time extended to 24 hours a day to accommodate the large volume of people.

On Friday morning U.K. time, the Department for Digital, Media, Culture and Sport released a statement announcing that the line for the lying-in-state queue had been officially paused because Southwark Park had reached capacity.

"Southwark Park has reached capacity," it said of the farthest point for the queue. "Entry will be paused for at least 6 hours. We are sorry for any inconvenience.

"Please do not attempt to join the queue until it re-opens."

Previously, it was reported that crowd marshals could have to turn members of the public away from the line on Sunday evening if it looked like they wouldn't reach the front before the coffin was moved from the hall to Westminster Abbey for the state funeral on Monday.

To accommodate the large crowds lining the 4.9-mile route, a number of first aid points and refreshment stands have been set up, including bathrooms that remain open throughout the night.

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, who lives at Lambeth Palace along the route and who will play a central role in the state funeral, has been seen meeting members of the public and offering a prayer that they might "keep warm" and "enjoy each other's company."

The tradition of monarch's lying in state is relatively new in the thousand-year history of the British monarchy. The first king to do so in the current form at Westminster Hall was Edward VII, the son of Queen Victoria in 1910.

In 1952, over 300,000 people filed past the coffin of Elizabeth II's father, King George VI, during his three-day-long lying-in-state period. While there are no official estimates for the number gathering to pay their respects to his daughter, it is likely that the number will exceed this as she will lie in state for an extra day.

On Friday and Saturday, special vigils will be held at the queen's coffin in which her children and grandchildren will participate. This practice was started in 1936 with the death of King George V.

During the monarch's lying-in-state, his four sons, each in their military uniforms, stood guard at their father's coffin. This was repeated in 2002 during the lying-in-state for Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother where four of her grandchildren (including King Charles, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward) paid their own tribute.

Elizabeth II's coffin will be taken from Westminster Hall to Westminster Abbey on Monday morning where the state funeral service will take place. Following this the queen's body will be taken to Windsor Castle where she will be buried alongside her husband, Prince Philip, who died last year at the age of 99.