On many occasions, she has been called the “immortal queen” because entire generations have been born and raised with her, both within her kingdom and beyond its borders. In recent years, especially in recent months when her husband, Prince Philip, died, the queen has seemed more fragile than in the past.
Despite his venerable age – he had blown out 96 candles a few months ago – his disappearance seemed sudden and unexpected, because he worked until the end, doing what he had always done: his duty in the service of his people..
The last days
His last public appearance was on September 6, 2022, two days before his death, when he performed his last constitutional duty by welcoming the fifteenth and final British Prime Minister of her country, Liz Truss, to his salon at Balmoral.who replaced the outgoing Boris Johnson.
As reported by the monthly magazine MajestyDuring the last week of her life, spent at the Scottish castle, Elizabeth II did not even neglect her private appointments that marked her beloved annual holidays, hosting a party for her various Bowes Lyon nephews and cousins - her mother’s family – with whom they always came to the castle in September to hunt.
She was a perfect hostess until the end, when she attended a dinner party on the last Sunday evening of her life. Some present described her as funny, lucid and always interested in her surroundings, as usual. The guests, however, noticed that her eyes were extremely red and that instead of the usual dinner, casual clothing was required for everyone that evening.
On September 8 at 3:10 p.m., Queen Elizabeth II passed away, after a life spent reigning but never governing. Having ascended to the throne in 1952, when she was just 25, she managed to remain firmly at the helm for more than seven decades..
The great popularity of Elizabeth II
For years, Queen Elizabeth II was the most popular member of the British royal family, a fact that continues to this day. Her long reign certainly helped, but Elizabeth II represented a bridge between the decline of the British Empire, the Commonwealth and the contemporary world.
She has experimented with and adapted all technological and communication innovations: from the telegraph to social networks, from radio to television, always trying to make the most of them to communicate about a thousand-year-old institution, increasingly complicated to understand.It is difficult, if not impossible, to think of a similar personality who has exerted such influence, in a period of so much change and evolution.
The image of Elizabeth II is so vivid that sometimes it seems as if she is still in this world. Her colorful looks, the image she gave of herself that was always the same over the years, her smiles and gestures of happiness during the races where her horse won, the rides in Windsor Park, her travels around the world, the receptions at Buckingham Palace, her jokes, her lively and curious eyes, the expressions of disappointment that she could not hold back, her name is inseparable from the word queen.
The Queen played a central role in the formation and maintenance of the Commonwealth and in building the soft power of Britain over the past seven decades.
Nobody ever likes him
Despite the many adversities encountered during 70 years of rule, as journalist and writer Alexander Larman stated in the pages of Time, Elizabeth II placed very high expectations on the monarchy, which no one, at least so far, has been able to meet.This left everyone orphaned from a time when the monarchy had reappeared several times and the Queen was a global reference, loved and respected by all, even by those who found the institution obsolete and preferred the republic.
Going back a little in time, there is only one other sovereign who has carried the name of the monarchy so high: Queen Victoria, during her almost 64 years on the throne.. After her, there were four kings who did not live up to her fame and the respect she had earned. It took another woman, Elizabeth II, who, half a century later, began to reign, even giving rise to talk of a “new Elizabethan age”, especially in recent times.
Her great sense of duty, her rigour, her quality as Queen of all while striving to maintain the right detachment and the mystery which still makes the monarchy fascinating, left Charles III with the impossible task of inheriting a legacy too great for anyone.
Last year, the English monarchy went through difficult times with the illness of King Charles III and the beloved Princess of Wales. These events amplified the absence of Elizabeth II and many look back on her reign with a mixture of nostalgia and regret..
A queen “by chance”, because at her birth she should not have become one, but life is unpredictable and so in 1936, when her uncle Edward VIII, future Duke of Windsor, abdicated the throne to marry Wallis Simpson, leaving the crown to her brother, Elizabeth’s father, she became the heir and never shied away from her duties.
A Queen’s Legacy
Charles III ascended the throne at the age of retirement and the tumor that affected him did not help the Sovereign to make his decisive contribution to the monarchy. As has been said many times, despite his great abilities, he will be a king who will lead the monarchy into the contemporary world, but many today look with great hopes to his son William and his daughter-in-law Kate.
Prince William, whose appearance is very reminiscent of his mother, Princess Diana, is trying to fulfill his duties as future sovereign as best he can, despite the illness that struck his wife, which has created a lot of worry and a real hurricane at court.
Two years after the reign of Charles III, according to a survey conducted by YouGovPrince William has the highest popularity rating with 75%, followed by his wife, Princess Catherine.
King Charles comes in fourth place, behind his workaholic sister Princess Anne, and Queen Camilla stops in seventh place.Although she has impeccably attended many public events in recent months, even acting in her husband’s place, Elizabeth II had shown foresight in deciding to publicly support her daughter-in-law Camilla, who later proved to be the king’s rock.
The Queen has also managed to keep the promise made during the COVID-19 pandemic when she said “we will meet again”: at that time she was a comfort to many, a security at a time when unease and uncertainty dominated and continues to maintain today because her personality and her choices have entered people’s hearts and it is easy to hear about her or see her image on television or on social networks.