Following last night’s devastating announcement from Buckingham Palace, our country, and indeed the world is in mourning for our longest reigning monarch, our beloved Queen Elizabeth II.
Throughout her seventy years as our sovereign, our magnificent Queen was a much-needed steadfast and unifying constant in an increasingly inconstant world, a globally respected figure and shining example of the best of humanity. It is my belief that, in her final days, she hung on in order to meet and appoint our new prime minister, to do her duty to the very end, thus fulfilling the promise she made to the British people all those decades ago that she would serve us faithfully for all her days.
Your Majesty, you were always there for us; you were one of the few good things within this mad modern world. Our loss is history’s gain as you now take your place at the head of the historic greats, and on behalf of myself and countless others, I would like to say:
Thank you for your selfless and unwavering devotion to duty
Thank you for your dazzling smile and your sense of fun
Thank you for your enduring presence through good times and bad…
…and in the words of your impish tea companion on the occasion of your Platinum Jubilee celebrations…
Thank you, Ma’am, for everything…
Queen Elizabeth II
1926 – 2022
medievalwanderings.com 
A very poignant post my love, beautifully written – it certainly brings a tear or two to my eyes.
Here’s to our Queen Elizabeth II, may she rest in a very well deserved peace.
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Thanks, I wanted to mark this sorrowful time in some way. The world will be a much poorer place without our constant matriarch, and it feels as though Britain has somehow been orphaned.
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I completely agree, her passing has left a big gap in our nation.
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…and across the world.
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Very much so…
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Absolutely. I remember seeing Trump and Melania in a photo with the Queen, and I thought, “You stupid, stupid man. You just don’t get it.” Behind her I saw thousands of years of history and the progress of humanity, striving toward, trying hard to be, something better than it was. She was an amazing woman.
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Thanks, Martha, she was indeed an amazing woman. I’ve said the same about Trump’s conduct with the Queen. He must be the only US president who didn’t get it, but then I don’t get the impression he gets much at all except himself. Thanks for reading my tribute, and for your kind comments on our iconic sovereign.
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Thanks for putting that post out Alli and I totally agree with the sentiments therein. I was reading in the news headlines yesterday about how she will go down in history as ‘one of the best British monarchs of all time’ – to me, she was THE BEST!
End of an era. I have to admit to being very weepy about it the last couple of days – Richard told me about it on the phone and I was just so deeply shocked. But thinking about it, as she was 96, I don’t suppose I should have been.
I’ll miss her most at Christmas. I never missed her Christmas Day speech no matter what – I insisted on watching it, preferably with the family, and in respectful silence. Of course, being ex-military, I always stood to attention at the end when the National Anthem came on. Not sure I’ll watch if there are any more and it isn’t her speech even though I’m a total Royalist.
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Thanks for the lovely comments, Carol, and I understand and echo all you say. It is, indeed, the end of an era, and you’re certainly not alone in beeing weepy – I have been too, in fact, we all have.
They’ve been saying on the news, quite rightly, that despite her age we weren’t prepared for her sudden passing. We all somehow fooled ourselves into thinking this day would never come, and as she was busy greeting the new prime minister only on Tuesday her rapid final demise was a shock to us all.
Christmas, among so many other occasions, won’t be the same without her.
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You’ve given her the perfect send-off Alli. Lovely words – and deservedly so.
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Thanks, Malc. It’s the least I could do.
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Very well put Alli. I’m not a great royalist (nor yet a republican – I guess I’m ambivalent) but it’s impossible not to admire her for her unfailing commitment to the role of monarch and the grace with which she carried out all her duties. It seems strange to think of a Britain without her, as we’ve known nothing else. On the lunchtime news today I heard God Save the King sung for the first time and it sounded very odd.
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Thanks, Sarah. It seems that whatever people’s stance on monarchy or republicanism, the Queen was universally respected for her work, her grace and her steadfast commitment to her country and her job. And I know what you mean about the new version of the National Anthem – I’ve never heard it sung this way before in my lifetime, and I think it’ll take a fair bit of getting used to.
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A bit late, Alli – but the sentiment does not age; beautifully said.
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Thank you, Mike, great to hear from you and I’m thanks for the kind comments. I felt it was the least I could do. Sorry to have been such a rotten follower over the past year, but I’ve barely been blogging at all. All my attention has been directed to our fast approaching big move, which is kicking off in around ten days’ time. I’m hoping to get one post out to bid the region around Bucks a fond farewell, and then it’s all happening. But when I come back to blogging properly I’ll look forward to enjoying more of your excellent site. Thanks again, and catch up soon. 🙂
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