Staff report
Buckingham Palace announced the death of Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and the world’s longest-serving head of state, Queen Elizabeth II, 96. She died peacefully at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on Thursday. She had been ill and her family had been called to her side.
Queen Elizabeth had reigned for over 70 years, assuming the throne at age 25 on the death of her father, George VI on Feb. 6, 1952. She was crowned in June the following year. Winston Churchill was Britain’s Prime Minister at the time.
“The death of my beloved Mother, Her Majesty the Queen, is a moment of the greatest sadness for me and all members of my family,” said her eldest son, Charles, in a statement. “We mourn profoundly the passing of a cherished Sovereign and a much-loved mother. I know her loss will be deeply felt throughtout the country, the Realms and the Commonwealth, and by countless people around the world.”
Queen Elizabeth (Wikimedia Commons photo)
Charles immediately became King Charles III, as heir to the throne.
The Queen was last seen in public on Tuesday when she appointed new Prime Minister Liz Truss, the 15th of her reign.
Details of the funeral have not yet been announced.
“Her legacy will loom large in the pages of British history, and in the story of our world,” U.S. President Joe Biden said in a statement.
Flags at the White House are at half-mast in the Queen’s honor. In keeping with a proclamation from the White House, Gov. Andy Beshear directed that flags at all state office buildings be lowered to half-staff until sunset on the day of interment, to be announced.
U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) issued the following statement:
“Today all Americans stand with our great friends across the Atlantic in mourning the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
“Elaine and I extend our deepest sympathies to the Royal Family and to the many millions of people across the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth, and the entire world who have drawn reassurance and inspiration from her historic reign, sterling character, and shining example.
“For 70 long years, from the aftermath of World War II well into the 21st century, across 15 different Prime Ministers, through great triumphs and great challenges, the Queen’s steady leadership safeguarded the land she loved. Despite spending nearly three-quarters of a century as one of the most famous and admired individuals on the planet, the Queen made sure her reign was never really about herself — not her fame, not her feelings, not her personal wants or needs. She guided venerable institutions through modern times using timeless virtues like duty, dignity, and sacrifice. She offered our contemporary world a living master class it needed badly.
“The decades of Her Majesty’s reign saw an intense deepening of the special relationship and close bond between the United States and the United Kingdom. The Queen who met sitting President Harry S. Truman as a 25-year-old princess and met a dozen more of our Presidents during her reign presided over an historic strengthening of our nations’ alliance that has changed the course of world history for the better.
“The British people’s loss is the entire world’s loss. We Americans join our friends in prayer, in grief, and in gratitude for such a remarkable leader and such a successful reign.”
