Queen Elizabeth II Passes Away at the age of 96, Charles succeeds as England’s King immediately

Queen Elizabeth II Passes Away: Queen Elizabeth II, World’s Oldest Monarch and the Longest Reigning Monarch of Britain, passed away today – 8th Sept 2022 at the age of 96. The news about her passing away was confirmed by Buckingham Palace through a formal statement which read “The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon,” said Buckingham Palace in a statement at 6:30 pm (1730 GMT). With her passing, Prince Charles of Wales, the eldest of the four royal children, will take over as the King of England with immediate effect.

The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon.

The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/VfxpXro22W

— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily)
September 8, 2022

Formally known as Elizabeth Alexandra Mary, her reign lasted for 70 years and seven months, one of the longest reigning monarchs of Britain and in the world. Queen Elizabeth II was suffering from health problems since October 2021. Following her demise, 10-days of National Mourning were announced by the British Government.

Queen Elizabeth II – Key Events from Her Life

• Birth: On 21st April 1926, Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary was born at 17 Bruton St, London. Later in May 1926, she was named Princess Elizabeth in the private chapel at Buckingham Palace.
• Heir to the Throne: On 11th December 1936, at the young age of 10, she became heir to the British Throne, when her uncle, Edward VIII, abdicated it and her father took over as King George VI.
• World War II: She joined the Women’s Branch of the British Army to fight during World War II in 1945.
• Marriage: On 20th November 1947, she married Navy Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten, Prince of Greece and Denmark.
• Children: Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip had four children i.e., Prince Charles (born in 1948), Princess Anne (1950), Prince Andrew (1960) and Prince Edward (1964).
• Ascension to the Throne: On 6th February 1952, she ascended to the throne after the death of her father, King George VI. Her coronation ceremony was held on 2nd June 1953 at Westminster Abbey, London. At the time of her ascension, Josef Stalin, Mao Zedong and Harry Truman were leading the Soviet Union, China and the United States. Winston Churchill was British Prime Minister when Queen Elizabeth II took the throne.
• Longest Reining British Monarch: On 9th Sept 2015, Queen Elizabeth II became the longest reining British Monarch surpassing her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria. Queen Victoria had been on the throne for 63 years, 7 months, 2 days, 16 hours and 23 minutes.
• Death of Prince Phillip: On 9th April 2021, Prince Phillip, Queen’s husband, passed away at the age of 99.
• Platinum Jubilee Celebration: She celebrated her Platinum Jubilee i.e., 70th anniversary since taking the throne on 6th February 2022.
• Death: On 8th Sept 2022, Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest reigning monarch passed away at the age of 96.

Queen of 15 Realms

Apart from Britain, Queen Elizabeth remained the sovereign monarch of over 15 countries or realms. These include the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Jamaica, Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Belize, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Tuvalu.

Reign Across 15 British PMs, 14 US Presidents

Queen’s reign is dubbed as the longest for any British Monarch so far. This fact can be further seen in a new perspective as during her 70-year reign, Britain saw 15 Prime Ministers starting from Winston Churchill until recently inducted Liz Truss. Along similar lines, 14 US Presidents have taken to the Whitehouse since her ascension in 1952, starting from Dwight Eisenhower to Joe Biden.