Elizabeth Windsor. 1926 – 2022

The death of Queen Elizabeth II at Balmoral on 8 September 2022, at the age of 96, brought to a close a reign of seventy years. She was born in London on 21 April 1926, the elder daughter of the Duke and Duchess of York, and was never expected to inherit the throne. That changed in December 1936, when her uncle Edward VIII abdicated and her father became King George VI.

A reign shaped by duty

Elizabeth was 25 when her father died in February 1952 and she became Queen. Her coronation took place at Westminster Abbey on 2 June 1953, the first to be broadcast on television. Over the decades that followed, she carried out a schedule of public engagements that few heads of state could match, working into her nineties and maintaining a visible presence at national ceremonies, commemorations and state occasions.

A life beyond the throne

She married Philip Mountbatten in November 1947, and their partnership lasted more than seventy years until his death in April 2021. The couple had four children: Charles, Anne, Andrew and Edward. Her private enthusiasms were well documented, among them horses, racing and the countryside, particularly the Balmoral estate in Aberdeenshire, where she spent her final months.

The closing chapter

The Platinum Jubilee in June 2022 marked seventy years on the throne, and just three days before her death she appointed Liz Truss as Prime Minister at Balmoral, the fifteenth holder of that office during her reign. She was succeeded by her eldest son, Charles, who took the throne as King Charles III.

Her state funeral was held at Westminster Abbey on 19 September 2022, followed by committal at St George’s Chapel, Windsor. She was buried alongside Prince Philip at the King George VI Memorial Chapel.