Remembering Queen Elizabeth II
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has died at the age of 96. A sign has been placed on the gates of Buckingham Palace announcing her death, the final chapter of the longest reign in the history of the British monarchy. She is survived by her four children, eight grandchildren, and 11 great-grandchildren. A royal funeral is expected to take place in the coming weeks and will bring together heads of state from around the world.
Video Transcript
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- Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has died. A notice has been placed on the gates of Buckingham Palace announcing her death, the final chapter in what has been the longest-reigning rule in the history of the British monarchy, and the world, for that matter. The eldest grandchild of King George V, Queen Elizabeth was born in Mayfair, London, in 1926. Following the abdication of her uncle, King Edward VIII, in 1936, Queen Elizabeth's father took the throne as King George VI, leaving Elizabeth as his presumptive heir.
During World War II, then-Princess Elizabeth began her public service career as a member of the Auxiliary Territorial Service, providing support for the war effort. In 1947, she married Philip Mountbatten, a first lieutenant in the Royal Navy and former prince of Denmark and Greece.
Following the death of King George VI in 1952, she ascended to the throne as the first female monarch in more than a century. Her coronation in Westminster Abbey took place on June the 2nd, 1953. Her eldest son, Prince Charles, was the first-ever child to witness his mother's coronation as Queen.
During her seven-decade reign, Queen Elizabeth oversaw the end stages of Britain's transition from an Empire to a Commonwealth and acted as the ceremonial head of state alongside more than a dozen elected prime ministers, among them, the Bulldog, Winston Churchill, and the Iron Lady, Margaret Thatcher. Her rule was marked by triumphs, military victories, easing of tensions at the height of the Cold War, and modernizing the monarchy, as well as tragedies, including a prolonged and deadly conflict in Northern Ireland, the assassination of her cousin, Lord Louis Mountbatten, and the divorce of Prince Charles and Princess Diana, whose death in August 1997 would shock the world.
In the heartbreak of Diana's death, Queen Elizabeth reluctantly addressed her kingdom, showing a personal side that endeared her to her people once more.
- I hope that tomorrow, we can all, wherever we are, join in expressing our grief at Diana's loss and gratitude for her all-too-short life.
- As a constitutional monarch, Queen Elizabeth rarely discussed politics publicly but was often a voice of hope to the Commonwealth nations. She is survived by her four children, eight grandchildren, and 11 great-grandchildren. A royal funeral is expected to take place in the coming weeks and will draw heads of state from around the world.
