On June 5, 2004, Ronald Reagan, the 40th president of the United States, died after having Alzheimer's disease for over a decade. Reagan was the first former U.S. president to die in 10 years since Richard Nixon in 1994. At the age of 93 years, 120 days, Reagan was the longest-lived U.S. president in history at the time of his death, a record which was surpassed by Gerald Ford on November 12, 2006. His seven-day state funeral followed. After Reagan's death, his body was taken from his Bel Air home to the Kingsley and Gates Funeral Home in Santa Monica, California, to prepare the body for burial. On June 7, Reagan's casket was transported by hearse and displayed at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, then flown to Washington, D.C., on June 9 for a service, public viewing and tributes at the U.S. Capitol.

Ronald Wilson Reagan was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. A member of the Republican Party, his presidency constituted the Reagan era, and he is considered one of the most prominent conservative figures in American history.