Queen Elizabeth, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and the nation’s figurehead for seven decades, has died aged 96, Buckingham Palace said on Thursday.
“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,” the palace said in a statement.
Flags across the U.K. were lowered to half-mast ahead of a national minute’s silence and the start of an official period of mourning.
Her eldest son Charles is expected to soon address the nation as king for the first time, with a coronation ceremony taking place at a later date.
Queen Elizabeth II first took on public duties during the Second World War young princess. She became queen in 1952 after the premature death of her father George VI
She married Philip Mountbatten in 1947, a marriage which lasted until his death in 2021 and produced four children: Charles, Anne, Andrew and Edward.
