Very saddened to hear of the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II today. She has served her country proudly and faithfully for 70 years; the longest serving UK monarch and the second longest serving monarch of all time. The thoughts and prayers of the nation are with the Royal Family during this time of mourning.
To many, both in the UK and worldwide, she is the only British monarch of their lifetime. And she will be remembered by them into the far future.
May she rest in peace…
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Yesterday afternoon the world lost an extraordinary women, a beloved mother and grandmother, a queen who dedicated her whole life to the service of the nation and who survived generations.
For most of us there has never been another king or queen on the british throne. She has always been there as a figure of power, stability and strength.
At the age of 25 she made the oath to put her life in the service of this country and fulfilled this promise for 70 years.
She had to overcome many difficult tasks. Governments have fallen, prime ministers and presidents have come and gone, and the world has changed. But she stayed.
After 70 years of service to the british monarchy and at the age of 96, we must say goodbye to a great queen, an icon.
My thoughts and prayers are with the royal family, her friends and loved ones.
And for the last farewell there is nothing more to say than:
God save the Queen
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“London Bridge is Down”
Rest in Peace, Your Majesty.
Elizabeth II, Queen of the UK, Canada and head of the Commonwealth has passed away at the age of 96.
70 years on the throne, her picture graced the classrooms of Commonwealth schools as we did our studies.
Her coronation as Queen being held June 2, 1953, she had been queen longer than I have drawn breath, having succeeded her father, King George VI when he passed away on February 6, 1952, becoming Queen on that date.
I distinctly remember the picture of her on the wall looking down on me as I did my math problems. This one was the one that was on the wall of our classroom
The queen had been the ruler of the Commonwealth and the United Kingdom for 23 years by the time I was in elementary school.
I, in 52 years of life, a mere two thirds of her reign, have known no other Commonwealth regent than her.
Her passing leaves me to wonder if her child Charles, now taking on the mantle of Charles III, regent, King of the UK and Leader of the Commonwealth will be as effective as her in keeping the Commonwealth unified. His reign no doubt will be a short one as he is already 73, the oldest to assume the throne. But one can only stand and watch to see what happens as citizens of the commonwealth wonder.
At 52, I probably may not be around to see William assume the throne since his father may live another twenty or so years as his mother and father did.
We’ll all see what happens during the course of Charles’ reign. But since Elizabeth was always there on the British throne during the course of my life, it will be hard to think of Charles as anything other than the Perennial Prince. It will take a much more drastic shift of thinking to perceive him as the King.
She wore the uniform during WWII,
Princess Elizabeth’s Wedding to Prince Philip.
And in her role as Queen of Canada, signing into effect the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
A favorite picture of Her Majesty dropping the puck at a Vancouver Canucks game that she was in attendance for.
As she passes from this life and into the realm of history books we can look upon the entirety of her reign in retrospect: she did “what was proper and dignified” as a regent for her subjects both at home and abroad.
May her reign be remembered,
“The Queen is dead; God Rest The Queen; Long Live the King; God Save The King!”
As a Canadian citizen and loyal Commonwealth subject, I say this: “Rest in Peace, my Queen.”
Her poignant words to her subjects still rings out from her first televised Christmas broadcast in 1957:
Today things are very different. I cannot lead you into battle, I do not give you laws or administer justice but I can do something else, I can give you my heart and my devotion to these old islands and to all the peoples of our brotherhood of nations.
Her words from her coronation in. 1953:
I have in sincerity pledged myself to your service, as so many of you are pledged to mine. Throughout all my life and with all my heart I shall strive to be worthy of your trust.
I have behind me not only the splendid traditions and the annals of more than a thousand years but the living strength and majesty of the Commonwealth and empire; of societies old and new; of lands and races different in history and origins but all, by God’s will, united in spirit and in aim.
You have, Your Majesty and in your passing you have left a void that others will truly struggle to fill.
Requiescat in pace, Elizabeth II Regina.
Your duty is done.
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