Bidens offer condolences after death of Queen Elizabeth, whose reign spanned 14 American presidents

President Joe Biden on Thursday mourned the death of Queen Elizabeth, a figure who he said was much more than a monarch.

“She defined an era,” the president said.

Biden and first lady Jill Biden signed a condolence book for the queen on Thursday evening at the British Embassy, where the president took several minutes to write a message, reporters noted.

"We mourn for all of you. She was a great lady," Biden said of the queen, in the presence of Ambassador Karen Pierce, her husband and embassy staff. "I'm so delighted I got to meet her."

In a lengthy statement earlier in the day, the Bidens praised the late queen as a “steadying presence” in a changing world. They said she led with “grace, an unwavering commitment to duty, and the incomparable power of her example.”

“Queen Elizabeth II was a stateswoman of unmatched dignity and constancy who deepened the bedrock Alliance between the United Kingdom and the United States. She helped make our relationship special,” the Bidens said in their statement, adding that the president looked forward to continuing a close relationship with King Charles and the queen consort. “We send our deepest condolences to the Royal Family, who are not only mourning their Queen, but their dear mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. Her legacy will loom large in the pages of British history, and in the story of our world.”

The queen, who died on Thursday after becoming the first British monarch to reign for 70 years, held the crown for nearly 30 percent of U.S. history. She ascended to the throne in 1952, leading the monarchy throughout 14 U.S. presidencies and playing a key role in aiding the U.K.’s relationship with the United States.

She was lauded on Thursday by members of both parties, former Republican and Democratic presidents and members of Congress. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said the queen was a “historic friend” of the U.S., and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ordered the flags at the Capitol to be flown at half-staff. The House will pass a bereavement resolution in the queen’s honor.

“May it be a comfort to her children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and the entire Royal Family that Americans join them in prayer at this sad time,” Pelosi said in a statement.

Biden also ordered flags to be flown to half-staff at the White House and federal buildings until the queen’s funeral.

Her first visit with U.S. top leadership was with President Harry S. Truman, who welcomed her to Washington as princess, along with Prince Philip, in 1951. Her last meeting with a U.S. president was in 2021, during the Bidens’ first overseas trip since winning the White House.

During her visit with Truman, she said that “free men everywhere look towards the United States with affection and with hope.”

Her first trip to Washington as queen was in 1957, upon receiving an invitation from President Dwight Eisenhower. They wrote each other letters for years and developed a friendship. The queen even sent him her recipe for scones.

Lyndon B. Johnson is the one U.S. president who did not meet the queen — for reasons that are still not clear. The two corresponded from 1964 to 1967, including letters with congratulations on births, birthday wishes and also a condolence message after Winston Churchill died.

In 1961, President John F. Kennedy and first lady Jacqueline Kennedy attended a banquet at Buckingham Palace with the queen and prince. Kennedy and the queen exchanged letters until his death in 1963, and she created a memorial and scholarship fund in his honor.

President Richard Nixon and first lady Patricia Nixon met with the queen and then-British Prime Minister Edward Heath at Chequers, the prime minister’s country residence, in 1970. In 1976, the queen and prince attended a state dinner at the White House with President Gerald Ford and first lady Betty Ford. The queen danced with Ford at the White House ball.

President Jimmy Carter visited with the queen at Buckingham Palace in 1977. “Her dignity, graciousness, and sense of duty have been an inspiration, and we join the millions around the world in mourning a remarkable leader,” the former president and former first lady Rosalynn Carter said in a statement following her death.

She met President Ronald Reagan and first lady Nancy Reagan multiple times. The queen reportedly had a good relationship with the Reagans and shared a love of horseback riding with the president.

She granted Reagan honorary knighthood in 1989 for the U.S. assistance to Britain in the Falklands War. The gesture is the highest distinction the nation awards to foreigners.

The queen visited the White House in 1991, when she met with President George H.W. Bush. Bush then took the queen to her first baseball game, the Baltimore Orioles vs. Oakland Athletics. When Bush died in 2018, the queen sent Prince Charles as a representative of the Royal Family to his funeral, and she released a statement calling him a “great friend and ally of the United Kingdom.”

President Bill Clinton, first lady Hillary Clinton and their daughter, Chelsea, met with the queen at Buckingham Place in 2000. Clinton recounted his visits to Buckingham Palace in a statement on Thursday from him and the former first lady, noting the queen’s “unfailing grace, dignity, and genuine care for the welfare” of her people.

“In sunshine or storm, she was a source of stability, serenity, and strength,” he said.

And in 2007, the queen attended the state dinner at the White House with President George W. Bush, who on Thursday called her a “woman of great intellect, charm, and wit.”

“Spending time at Buckingham Palace, and having tea with Her Majesty — and her Corgis — is among our fondest memories of the presidency,” Bush said in a statement from him and former first lady Laura Bush. “Queen Elizabeth ably led England through dark moments with her confidence in her people and her vision for a brighter tomorrow. Our world benefited from her steady resolve.”

President Barack Obama and first lady Michele Obama attended the state banquet in Buckingham Place in 2011. In their first visit with the queen, the Obamas gifted her an iPod that was loaded with photos and videos of her 2007 trip to the United States.

The queen, during World War II, became the first female to serve on active military duty, the Obamas said in their statement on Thursday, writing that she “defied odds and expectations placed on women of her generation.” They talked about her leadership through dark times and those of prosperity — “from the moon landing, to the fall of the Berlin Wall, to the dawn of the digital age,” they said, “she served as a beacon of hope and stability for the people of the United Kingdom and the world.”

“Michelle and I were lucky enough to come to know Her Majesty, and she meant a great deal to us. Back when we were just beginning to navigate life as President and First Lady, she welcomed us to the world stage with open arms and extraordinary generosity,” the statement said. “Time and again, we were struck by her warmth, the way she put people at ease, and how she brought her considerable humor and charm to moments of great pomp and circumstance.”

In 2019, President Donald Trump met with the queen at Buckingham Palace. In a statement Thursday, Trump and former first lady Melania Trump talked about her diplomatic legacy in uniting countries around the world.

“However, she will always be remembered for her faithfulness to her country and her unwavering devotion to her fellow countrymen and women,” the statement said. “Melania and I will always cherish our time together with the Queen, and never forget Her Majesty’s generous friendship, great wisdom, and wonderful sense of humor. What a grand and beautiful lady she was — there was nobody like her!”

Her last visit with a U.S. president was in June 2021, when she met with the Bidens in Cornwall. This was the last time she spoke with the president, White House press secretary Karine-Jean Pierre said on Thursday, and the White House has not yet said whether the president will travel for her service.

Olivia Olander contributed to this report.