Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-serving head of state in history, died at the age of 96.
She ruled over 15 British prime ministers and 14 US presidents. She was able to keep the throne of a country that was almost broken by war through a time of great change for the U.K.
In the months leading up to her death, the Queen took a break from royal duties, including missing the opening of parliament in May and the thanksgiving service in June. Although the Queen was well enough to preside over the appointment of Liz Truss as Britain's Prime Minister on Tuesday, she had to do so from her Balmoral estate in Scotland.
Her family, including her son Prince Charles and grandsons, Prince William and Prince Harry, had gathered in Balmoral to be with her, according to reports.
Queen Elizabeth II, Britain's Steadfast Monarch, DiesEven though her private life was in turmoil, the Queen continued to carry out her royal duties in the public eye.
The United Kingdom was the seat of an Empire that spanned the globe. The Queen remains the leader of 15 nations, including Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, and the head of a Commonwealth of more than 50 nations. She traveled the globe as an ambassador for British achievements. She was devoted to maintaining the special relationship between the U.K. and the U.S. over a period of more than 70 years.
Even though the world changed while Elizabeth was Queen, she was still seen as a rock of patriotism. The example and continuity provided by the Queen is not only very rare among leaders but a source of pride and reassurance.
The baby was born in the early hours of April 21st, 1926. She was third in the line of succession. Her father, Prince Albert, was the second son of King George V. He was single, childless, and was rumored to have little interest in taking over his father's crown.
The early life of Princess Elizabeth was covered by both the British press and the former colonies. Time reported that the water came from the River Jordan. When he first met Elizabeth at two years old, he said that he saw in her an air of authority and reflectiveness.
The young Elizabeth was enamored with the monarch, who gave her the place of honor on his lap when they traveled through the streets of London. The queen rides out with the king a lot. Lilibet's father was left out of the spotlight because he claimed to be the father of Princess Elizabeth.
Her reign as only child ended at four years old when her sister Margaret Rose was born. The girls were playing with their terrier puppies and corgis on the palace grounds. They cared for and trained a succession of pet ponies and shared the same nannies and governesses.
Lilibet's uncle David became King Edward VIII after George V died. The royal family became prime players in a 20th century succession drama that was riveting to a worldwide audience. On December 10, 1936, Edward abdicated the throne to marry the second divorcee of his family. He told them not to put him in a frame. Lilibet was 10 years old when she was told she would become queen after her father died.
On September 3, 1939, Britain declared war on Nazi Germany. The kingdom of Elizabeth, along with much of the rest of the world, was about to be engulfed in war because of the war's threat. Hitler made a promise to make Britain his next conquest less than a year after entering Paris. The day and night Luftwaffe bombing raids that rained fire and terror over London and other cities in England were at their peak.
The Princess spent her teens knitting socks for British soldiers and collecting tinfoil and rolling bandages. She lived frugally even though she was a teenage princess and heir to the British throne and sent some of her weekly allowance to emergency child welfare funds.
Buckingham Palace was hit nine times, including once in September 1940, but the King and Queen were able to escape unharmed. The Queen said that the children wouldn't leave without her. I won't leave without the king. The king will stay.
The King's decision to stay in England for the duration of the war endedeared him to the nation. It made sense that Elizabeth would be called to the throne if her father died.
In October 1940, the future monarch broadcasted on the radio. She spoke to the tens of thousands of children who were separated from their families at the height of the war. She spoke in a clear voice that offered a hint of calm and compassion that many would come to admire.
The auxiliary territorial service was one of the women's units during the war. She completed her training as a mechanic and truck driver at the training center. She was covered in grease and dirt after the labor was done. She said that everything she learned was new to her. I've never worked harder in my life.
After her 19th birthday, she joined the ecstatic and rowdy street celebrations that swept London following Germany's surrender. She, her sister, a group of friends, and a few guardians ran among the crowds that surged through the city after standing on the balcony at Buckingham Palace. She wrote in her journal that she walked for two nights in a row and then slept. She said these were the most memorable nights of her life.
After the war, the princess contemplated marriage. Elizabeth had visited a naval college in the past where she was met by a tall cadet.
The nephew of Constantine King of Greece was born on the Greek island of Corfu in 1921. He was sent to England at the age of nine to live with his grandmother, who was the widow of a British naval commander. He was educated in England, Germany, and Scotland and became a fine young athlete, as Elizabeth would note to her governess, Crawfie. How high can he go?
After the war ended, Philip was put on shore duty at a naval base in England. He would often stop at Buckingham Palace to eat dinner with Elizabeth and Margaret. They developed a romance. She was happy. George was her father. At first, it's not so much. The gentle king wasirritated by his loud, boisterous laugh and blunt seagoing manners. Elizabeth and Philip got married after a short stay with her family at Balmoral Castle. The princess was annoyed by the king's lack of enthusiasm for Elizabeth's beau, because he was concerned about how the people of Britain would react to a foreign prince marrying the heir to the throne. George was tense as Elizabeth moped about in tears while her mother and grandmother fought for her. George decided that the young couple should wait six months to be sure.
There were challenges to overcome. Public opinion polls showed that a majority of the nation preferred Philip marrying the princess. The couple were introduced at a Buckingham Palace garden party. The wedding was held on the 20th. Philip had converted from Greek Orthodoxy to Anglicanism, avoiding one social problem before the ceremony, and Elizabeth's father made the former member of the Greek and Danish royal families a British royal duke, the Duke of Edinburgh.
Thousands of people cheered as Elizabeth made her way to the abbey in the royal coach. Thousands of people woke up in the morning to listen to the ceremony on the radio. Prime Minister Clement Attlee was in attendance. Many Britons saw the wedding as a beacon of hope in the aftermath of World War II.
On February 5, 1952, Princess Elizabeth woke up as the Queen of England after sleeping in a tree hut in a national park. The news of King George VI's death hadn't yet reached that outpost of the British Empire, so she wasn't aware of her new position. Philip got a phone call that George had died. The prince took his bride down to the river to relay the news. Elizabeth went back to the lodge on Philip's arm and began making plans for the long trip home.
She arrived at the airport the next day. The group of advisers to the monarchy were there to greet her. After sleeping that night, she signed the oath of accession before the Privy Council the next day. She was already the Queen in the months that followed. The Palace allowed the focus to remain on King George and his 16 enormously popular years on the throne.
The official ceremony took place on June 2, 1953, in hopes of a bright spring. The nation decided to have a gray morning. The arrival of Her Majesty was announced at 11 a.m. VivatReginaElizabetha! Viva, Viva! Viva, Viva! The scholars shouted Vivat as she walked up the aisle. Elizabeth was asked if she would govern her people according to the laws of God and the customs of her people. She kissed the bible and swore to help God. He put the Imperial State Crown on Elizabeth's head. Cheers of "God Save the Queen" filled the Abbey as trumpets blared outside and across the British Empire.
Elizabeth spent a lot of time traveling the world as her nation's goodwill ambassador after she became Britain's head of state. She embarked on a tour of the British Commonwealth after her coronation, presiding over state balls, garden parties, luncheons, banquets and other events. She went to Libya, Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, Jamaica, Uganda, and the Pacific island of Tonga, where she enjoyed the company of the Queen. She returned to London six months after she left.
During the fall of 1957, Elizabeth and Philip traveled to New York City, Washington, D.C., and parts of Virginia to celebrate the 350th anniversary of the founding of the first British colony in America. They were invited to stay at the White House for four nights. Washington was praised by Elizabeth at the president's state dinner. After Richard Nixon hosted a luncheon at the Capitol, Elizabeth went to a football game at the University of Maryland and stopped in a Giant supermarket.
It was clear that the travel bug was biting. During Elizabeth's visit to India in 1961, a quarter of a million people came to see her speak. She was offered a ride on a ceremonial elephant. The Indian government viewed Elizabeth's trip as an attempt to undermine the country's independence. Philip drew negative publicity when official photos emerged of him killing a tiger. The British tabloid The Daily Mirror condemned the royals for not recognizing the modern enlightened view on the killing of animals for pleasure.
The wind of change blowing through Africa has become a Hurricane according to the Prime Minister of the country at the time. The legacy of colonialism still hangs over the country after it became independent from the British Empire in 1957. A number of African nations would become independent in the 1960s.
Elizabeth visited West Germany in 1965, the first state visit by a reigning British monarch in a century. The trip came two decades after the end of World War II, due to fears of residual resentment between the U.K. and Germany. Fears were not justified. In the 20 years since the war, hostility between Germany and the Queen has been healed. As she placed a wreath on a Beethoven monument near the Bonn city hall, the crowd cheered and chanted "ELizabet, Eliz-a-bet!"
She wouldn't be able to spend time with her family if she traveled all the time. The five-and-a-half-month world tour that followed her coronation took place when Charles was five and Anne was three. They chatted with their mother on the phone. Elizabeth was a person who always made work her priority.
In 1994, Prince Charles allowed his biographer to reveal that he felt estranged from his parents, who were unable or unwilling to give him the affection he wanted as a young man. The Duke had close friends and they found his behavior very harsh. The Queen appeared to be detached. Elizabeth and Philip were hurt by this. Philip was the only one who would comment publicly. Princess Anne, the couple's daughter and Charles's younger sister, defended Elizabeth from rumors that she was remote and impersonal as a mother. She said in 2002 that she didn't think there was any evidence that she wasn't caring. It just doesn't make sense. As children, we were aware of the limitations of time and the responsibilities that came with being a monarch. I don't think she cared for us differently than any other mother did.
When a little more compassion, a little more kindness, might have been needed, Anne might have acknowledged a warmth that was sometimes wanting on her part later in life.
In 1992, the Queen described the year as a "horrible year" due to all the personal problems of that time. When her second son, Andrew, separated from his wife, Sarah, when daughter Anne divorced her husband, Mark, and when public concern grew about the cost of the monarchy, this was the year.
It was significant. Parts of the castle that were more than 900 years old were destroyed in the fire. 250 firefighters worked for 15 hours to control it. More than 100 rooms were damaged when the state apartments didn't have a sprinkler system.
British citizens were angry when they were told that they would have to pay for repairs to Windsor Castle. Elizabeth volunteered to pay taxes on her private investments. She has a net worth of about $500 million.
These were matters of state. The troubles of Charles and Di caused Elizabeth to grieve more.
The nation was riveted by their 1981 marriage. The prince and princess on their wedding day are the stuff of fairy tales according to the archbishop. The ability to maintain the illusion of marriage for the sake of appearances became impossible because of infidelity. The transcript of a phone conversation between Diana and a close friend was published in The Sun tabloid, with Diana describing life with Charles as "real torture" and saying she had caught the Queen Mother watching her. Diana and her sons, William and Harry, continued to reside at Kensington Palace, while Charles' relationship with a woman was questioned by the tabloids. The prince and princess separated.
The royal family and Queen Elizabeth were upset by Diana's confession that she had been unfaithful to Charles. Diana noted in the interview that there were three of them in the marriage, so it was a bit crowded, as Charles admitted his own infidelity on a TV documentary the previous year. The Queen wrote to Charles and Diana asking them to agree to an early divorce. Buckingham Palace said Charles favored the divorce but there was no word from Diana. In February 1996, more than a year before Diana, Dodi, and Henri Paul died in a car crash, she finally released her own statement saying she was ready to divorce as well. What did Elizabeth think? Initially, the Queen's press office said that she was most interested in hearing that the Princess of Wales had agreed to divorce. The Queen wanted the divorce discussions to be conducted quietly and amicably.
It took Elizabeth a long time to get used to modern conveniences. The press noted that Elizabeth was not enamored of her son's consort. The turning point occurred in 2002 when Charles provided strong evidence that he was gaining ground in his campaign to officially bring Camilla into the family fold.
The Duke of Edinburgh and I are very happy that the Prince of Wales and his wife are going to marry. She and Prince Philip attended a blessing of the couple at St. George's Chapel in Windsor Castle but did not attend their wedding.
In keeping with Elizabeth's sense of royal tradition, a more festive wedding took place on April 29th, 2011. The fiery sermon delivered by Bishop Michael Curry of Chicago, the first African American head of the Episcopal Church in the U.S., was part of the more modern wedding at Windsor Castle that she attended.
Further scandals would be faced by the Queen. Harry and Megan claimed that racism had hurt their relationship with the Windsors. Harry said that his family never spoke to the press about Megan.
The family was thrust into the spotlight again when it was revealed that Andrew had a relationship with a convicted sex criminal. Andrew stepped back from royal duties in late 2019, and in 2021, he was sued by a woman who accused him of sexual abusing her when she was a teenager. According to The Daily Telegraph, the Queen contributed millions of pounds to her son's legal defense and agreed to contribute to a charity as part of the settlement.
As the Queen neared the end of her life, she didted on her children and children's offspring. She is a normal grandmother in a small room with family. Harry said that he andMeghan were very relaxed before they stepped back as royals. She takes a lot of interest in what we do as well as her children and granddaughters. She wants to know how our lives are going and what charities we support. She's interested in what we do.
Elizabeth continued with her royal duties after entering her ninth decade.
The Queen would read a selection of 200 to 300 letters a day, as well as review official papers and documents sent to her by government ministers and her representatives in foreign countries. She used to have 10- to 20-minute audiences with ambassadors, commissioners, and other officials, as well as weekly visits from the British prime minister, until she was forced to slow down due to mobility issues and bouts of ill health.
The Queen was a hugely popular figure in both the U.K. and beyond. Even in the most trying times, she was still a force for good. She encouraged her subjects in Britain and across the Commonwealth to draw inspiration from ordinary people doing extraordinary things.
In February 2022, the Queen became the first British monarch to reach 70 years on the throne. Although mobility issues prevented her from attending the majority of Buckingham Palace's Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June of the same year, community celebrations were widespread across the United Kingdom. The coalition said the celebrations were the largest community event in British history.
The Queen looked ordinary at Prince Philip's funeral. The image of the monarch sitting alone in a pew at Windsor Castle became instantly recognizable and burnished her image as a leader through good times and bad.
The Queen filled her life with extraordinary acts of duty both public and private, whether she was carrying out the requirements of the state from the trappings of the throne, or giving quiet words of encouragement to a well-wisher in a crowd. She has been a rock of stability in an era when our country has changed a lot. We couldn't be prouder of her. She has served this country with honor and distinction.
The reporting was done by Eloise Barry, Kathy Ehrich Dowd, and Madeleine Roache.
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