From the BBC:
“Queen Elizabeth II has died,
Buckingham Palace announces”
Queen Elizabeth II, the UK's
longest-serving monarch, has died at Balmoral aged 96, after reigning for 70
years. Her family gathered at her Scottish estate after concerns grew about her
health earlier on Thursday. The Queen came to the throne in 1952 and witnessed
enormous social change. With her death, her eldest son Charles, the former
Prince of Wales, will lead the country in mourning as the new King and head of
state for 14 Commonwealth realms. In a statement, Buckingham Palace said:
"The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon. "The King and
the Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to
London tomorrow." All the Queen's children travelled to Balmoral, near
Aberdeen, after doctors placed the Queen under medical supervision. Her
grandson, Prince William, is also there, with his brother, Prince Harry, on his
way.
Queen Elizabeth II's tenure as
head of state spanned post-war austerity, the transition from empire to
Commonwealth, the end of the Cold War and the UK's entry into - and withdrawal
from - the European Union. Her reign spanned 15 prime ministers starting with
Winston Churchill, born in 1874, and including Liz Truss, born 101 years later
in 1975, and appointed by the Queen earlier this week. She held weekly
audiences with her prime minister throughout her reign. At Buckingham Palace in
London, crowds awaiting updates on the Queen's condition began crying as they
The Queen was born Elizabeth
Alexandra Mary Windsor, in Mayfair, London, on 21 April 1926. Few could have
foreseen she would become monarch but in December 1936 her uncle, Edward VIII,
abdicated from the throne to marry the twice-divorced American, Wallis Simpson.
Elizabeth's father became King George VI and, at age 10, Lilibet, as she was
known in the family, became heir to the throne. Within three years, Britain was
at war with Nazi Germany. Elizabeth and her younger sister, Princess Margaret,
spent much of wartime at Windsor Castle after their parents rejected
suggestions they be evacuated to Canada. After turning 18, Elizabeth spent five
months with the Auxiliary Territorial Service and learned basic motor mechanic
and driving skills. "I began to understand the esprit de corps that
flourishes in the face of adversity," she recalled later. Through the war,
she exchanged letters with her third cousin, Philip, Prince of Greece, who was
serving in the Royal Navy. Their romance blossomed and the couple married at
Westminster Abbey on 20 November 1947, with the prince taking the title of Duke
of Edinburgh. She would later describe him as "my strength and stay"
through 74 years of marriage, before his death in 2021, aged 99. Their first
son, Charles, was born in 1948, followed by Princess Anne, in 1950, Prince
Andrew, in 1960, and Prince Edward, in 1964. Between them, they gave their
parents eight grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.
Princess Elizabeth was in Kenya
in 1952, representing the ailing King, when Philip broke the news that her
father had died. She immediately returned to London as the new Queen. "It
was all a very sudden kind of taking on and making the best job you can,"
she later recalled. Elizabeth was crowned at Westminster Abbey on 2 June 1953,
aged 27, in front of a then-record TV audience estimated at more than 20
million people. Subsequent decades would see great change, with the end of the
British Empire overseas and the swinging '60s sweeping away social norms at
home.
^ The First Canadian Monarch and
the First Canadian Queen has died. She was a remarkable Queen and Person who
did so much for so many. She reigned for 70 years and 214 days. ^
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