Baroness Thatcher's funeral will be a sombre spectacle accompanied by all the pomp and ceremony befitting someone of her status.

There have been calls for the former prime minister to be granted the honour of a state funeral - something she did not want.

State funerals are generally limited to sovereigns but by order of the Queen and by a vote in Parliament can be extended to exceptionally distinguished people.

National figures like Lord Nelson, the Duke of Wellington and former wartime prime minister Sir Winston Churchill received the honour.

But the event for Baroness Thatcher, described as a ceremonial funeral with full military honours, will be very similar to a state funeral in terms of its pageantry.

It will also mirror the arrangements for the funerals of Diana, Princess of Wales, and the Queen Mother.

Lady Thatcher's funeral will feature the public element of the coffin being carried through the streets of London on a gun carriage.

The same honour was bestowed on Diana, the Queen Mother and Churchill and allows ordinary people to pay their respects as the funeral cortege passes by.