Six days of remembrance for Jimmy Carter begins

The events to bade farewell to the 39th president commence this Saturday, Jan. 4. There will be six days of funerary honors ending with a state funeral in Washington on the 9th and burial in his native Georgia alongside his wife Rosalynn.

Although flags have been flying at half-staff since Carter's death, the state tributes to the Democrat officially kick off this Saturday. Secret Service agents, those charged with protecting political figures, carry the casket to a hearse for a tour of Plains.

From Plains to Washington

The motorcade carrying his remains will pause at the family's peanut-growing farm. There, a bell will ring 39 times to pay tribute to the 39th head of state. AFP reports that the motorcade will return to Atlanta for a brief stop at the Georgia Capitol, where Carter served as a local senator before becoming the state's governor. A moment of silence will be observed.

From there, the hearse will go to the Carter Center, the foundation created in 1982 by the former president and his wife Rosalynn that specializes in conflict prevention, democracy advocacy and public health issues.

At this foundation the former president's remains will rest from 7:00 pm Saturday (East Coast time) until 6:00 am Tuesday to allow locals to pay their respects. On Tuesday morning, his remains will be flown from Georgia to Joint Base Andrews, outside Washington, on a U.S. Air Force aircraft named Special Air Mission 39.

Memorial tribute on Capitol Hill beginning Tuesday

A funeral procession will then transport the former commander in chief's body to the U.S. Navy Memorial. The casket, in a horse-drawn carriage will arrive at the Capitol, the seat of Congress in the capital. From there it will be placed in the Rotunda, a room located under the Capitol dome, for a tribute ceremony in the presence of members of congress.

Citizens will be able to pay their respects from 7:00 pm to midnight Tuesday, and from 7:00 am Wednesday to 7:00 pm Thursday. Carter will be the 13th former president to lie in state at the Capitol. Abraham Lincoln, assassinated in 1865, was the first.

The four living presidents will coincide at the funeral

On Thursday, Jan. 9, the state funeral will be held at the cathedral, where former presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, Gerald Ford and George H.W. Bush received their final farewells in the past. All four living former presidents - Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump - are expected to attend. Biden, as president at the time of the funeral, will be in charge of delivering the funeral eulogy.

Per Biden's decision, it will be a day of national mourning and federal government offices will remain closed. As is tradition, he has also ordered flags to fly at half-staff for 30 days, which means they will remain that way during Trump's inauguration on January 20, something that provoked the Republican's anger.

The funeral and burial, in Georgia alongside his wife Rosalynn

After the religious service, Carter's mortal remains will be transferred to Georgia, where a private funeral will be held at the Plains Baptist Church where Carter taught Sunday school.

A final motorcade through his hometown will carry his remains to the plot where he will be buried next to Rosalynn, his wife of 77 years who died in 2023 at age 96.

U.S. Navy planes will also fly over the town in his honor.