Queen Elizabeth II has died

[Herman]

I think her receiving Boris Johnson and Liz Truss just two days before her death was an amazing illustration of her being indefatigable, and yet...

in my view she set a horrible example by keeping on these many years, till 96 years for godsake, and not giving Charles a chance when he was, say, sixty years old.

rather than keeping the UK together as a beacon of stability I could well imagine her stubborness exacerbated many things that have been going very bad in the UK the past fifteen years.

however, perhaps I'm wrong in this view.

[Jo498]

Maybe she considered it before the Camilla/Di/Dodi affair blew up?
And then it would have been too risky to abdicate in favor of Charles who would not have been close in popularity and as a symbol of stability. And I doubt that he would have stood up against the things that have been going "very bad" for decades.
It's not that the UK is alone here.
That some things seem more extreme there is probably at least partly because they could afford some pernicious developments because of windfalls like North sea oil in the 1970s  and a crazy world economy that made reliance on banksters (= city of London) not only possible but lucrative for a surprisingly long period of time.

[Fëanor]

I think her receiving Boris Johnson and Liz Truss just two days before her death was an amazing illustration of her being indefatigable, and yet...

in my view she set a horrible example by keeping on these many years, till 96 years for godsake, and not giving Charles a chance when he was, say, sixty years old.

rather than keeping the UK together as a beacon of stability I could well imagine her stubborness exacerbated many things that have been going very bad in the UK the past fifteen years.

however, perhaps I'm wrong in this view.

In the contrary, I think it's just fine that Elizabeth held on to the end.  Let's face it, the Monarch plays almost no role in the governance of the country:  in a sense it doesn't matter who he/she personally is.  Charles has played an increasing role which was both fitting and necessary from the point of view of the minor if visible duties of the Monarch.

For example -- a ceremonially very important one -- Charles opened the current session of Parliament as the Queen's personal surrogate.  Note the Imperial State Crown, normally worn by the Queen herself when opening Parliament, is displayed beside Charles.

[Mandryka]

You mean his biscuit empire?



They're not bad, actually.

I must say, seeing this has caused a sharp intake of breath. Somehow, and I speak with some authority here because I am British through and through, somehow the idea of His Majesty the King being basically a biscuit salesman seems totally wrong.

By the way, his oatcakes are nowhere near as good as Nairn's - but maybe Nairn hasn't made it to The Lone Star State.

[Mandryka]

I think her receiving Boris Johnson and Liz Truss just two days before her death was an amazing illustration of her being indefatigable, and yet...

in my view she set a horrible example by keeping on these many years, till 96 years for godsake, and not giving Charles a chance when he was, say, sixty years old.

rather than keeping the UK together as a beacon of stability I could well imagine her stubborness exacerbated many things that have been going very bad in the UK the past fifteen years.

however, perhaps I'm wrong in this view.

My own thought is that, if you receive the likes of Boris Johnson and Liz Truss in one day it's almost inevitable that you will die two days after.

[Mandryka]

When Parliament was opened this year, Charles delivered the Queen's speech. I felt he was totally uncomfortable with the role, he came across to me as an unwell and unhappy old man. Constipated.

[Irons]

My own thought is that, if you receive the likes of Boris Johnson and Liz Truss in one day it's almost inevitable that you will die two days after.

Not religious, but sometimes .........

Not only a rainbow over Windsor Castle yesterday



but Buckingham Palace too!

[Karl Henning]

I don't pretend to unspool the ol' memory with any accuracy, but I should guess that Queen Elizabeth was the first foreign figure I was aware of, and I probably knew of her before I knew who the President of the US was.

[LKB]

Whatever one may think of the British monarchy as an institution, Elizabeth ll was a close to a perfect sovereign as the UK will ever have. She discharged the duties of her position with a nobility which was both personal and practical. She was Queen for seventy years, never faltered, and was loved by countless people around the world.

I don't envy King Charles lll. He must now master his personal grief, put whatever he learned from his mother into daily practice, and try to be a worthy successor.

It wouldn't surprise me at all to learn that he was wishing he could be anything but the King of England.

[Spotted Horses]

I must say, seeing this has caused a sharp intake of breath. Somehow, and I speak with some authority here because I am British through and through, somehow the idea of His Majesty the King being basically a biscuit salesman seems totally wrong.

By the way, his oatcakes are nowhere near as good as Nairn's - but maybe Nairn hasn't made it to The Lone Star State.

Actually we often eat Nairn biscuits here. I'm not sure I've ever found the King's biscuits here in the states. I might have tried them some years ago when I was in London and Cambridge on holiday.

[nakulanb]

She was beautiful inside and out!  Incredible woman.  The rainbows are beautiful.

[Pohjolas Daughter]

Just got a very silly email from Europadisc. In tribute to the Queen, they are not sending out their usual Friday promotional email...but all their Friday promotions are still available and ready if you click through to their website.

So they still have promotions...and they still sent an email...their tribute to the Queen is just to not put the link in the email 

That sounds strange!

Not religious, but sometimes .........

Not only a rainbow over Windsor Castle yesterday



but Buckingham Palace too!

I heard about (saw in pictures) those rainbows and thought that was particularly special--including a double rainbow!

From this American's standpoint [And I hope that you don't mind me adding my two-cents worth], King Charles III will certainly have quite some challenges ahead of him (to say the least) and will have to figure out his own path.  From what I recall reading and hearing about in the past, he's been very much involved in a number of environmental and organic gardening/food *charities and was also one of the earlier warners about the dangers of climate change and that we needed to figure out a way to reverse it.  I remember when his book on Highgrove was published too.

Obviously now, he has a whole new position with different responsibilities and commitments.  How he'll figure out how to balance things/duties and what to spend time on and how to use his voice effectively will be interesting to see.  That and how to evolve with the times and find the right balance between modernizing the monarchy and keeping certain traditions alive.

It will also be interesting to see if he meets regularly with the PMs and what kind of relationships he develops there and advice that he gives them--though, from what I understand, those discussions are normally kept private.

I wish him all the best--wisdom, health, fortitude and strength particularly in these trying times and with the recent loss of his mother and Queen.  And my heart goes out to his family, their friends and all who knew and loved Queen Elizabeth, II all across the world.

*amongst others

Flags at half-mast here; a fitting tribute me thinks.

PD

[Spotted Horses]

I think Charles could be a decent, if not particularly great, king.

I'm not sure what it even means to be a great king. The King doesn't have any duties or powers, except to preside at various ceremonies. I think his biggest problem is that he has taken it on himself to advocate for various causes, and as the King he is supposed to be entirely neutral. He will have to pull back from his advocacy if he is to satisfy that requirement.

I saw a newspaper article and it said that Camilla would become Queen, but without any powers. Then I thought, what powers would those even be?

[JBS]

I'm not sure what it even means to be a great king. The King doesn't have any duties or powers, except to preside at various ceremonies. I think his biggest problem is that he has taken it on himself to advocate for various causes, and as the King he is supposed to be entirely neutral. He will have to pull back from his advocacy if he is to satisfy that requirement.

I saw a newspaper article and it said that Camilla would become Queen, but without any powers. Then I thought, what powers would those even be?

Maybe they were trying to emphasize thar Queen Regnant (which Queen Elizabeth was) is a very different position than Queen Consort (which seems to be Camilla's title).
I seem to remember that at the time she married Charles, it was announced she would never be Queen, only Duchess of Cornwall (she was never officially Princess of Wales). That apparently is now down the memory hole.

[Pohjolas Daughter]

I must say, seeing this has caused a sharp intake of breath. Somehow, and I speak with some authority here because I am British through and through, somehow the idea of His Majesty the King being basically a biscuit salesman seems totally wrong.

By the way, his oatcakes are nowhere near as good as Nairn's - but maybe Nairn hasn't made it to The Lone Star State.

From what I can see, the proceeds goes towards charity?

From the Waitress Duchy Organic website:

Sales from Waitrose Duchy Organic provide a donation to The Prince of Wales's Charitable Fund. Since 2009, you have helped us raise over £30 million for good causes, supporting a wide range of projects and communities

Registered Charity 1127255 (England and Wales)  Not certain if that means that it's a 100 donation (probably net vs. gross sales) or "x-amount/percentage"?  Does anyone here know?  The wording sounded to me like it was all of the Waitress Duchy Organic problems that this applies to too.

https://www.waitrose.com/ecom/shop/browse/groceries/organic_shop/duchy

PD

[vers la flamme]

My own thought is that, if you receive the likes of Boris Johnson and Liz Truss in one day it's almost inevitable that you will die two days after.

I am British through and through

Yes, you are

I can't but echo Relm1's thoughts on the matter:

This makes me sad even though she lived a very long and extremely full life.  It's just hard to conceptualize the loss of someone who was always present.  This is the first day of my life where she's not there.  RIP.

I'm not a Brit, and as much as I like to believe I was an Englishman in a recent past life, I have no way of proving this—but one cannot deny that this marks the end of a (seven-decade) era.

[Brian]

My understanding is that "Queen Consort" is a completely made-up title for Camilla only which has never been used for the queen of any previous British king, and that it is meant to make people think about Diana. Silliness.

[Karl Henning]

My understanding is that "Queen Consort" is a completely made-up title for Camilla only which has never been used for the queen of any previous British king, and that it is meant to make people think about Diana. Silliness.

I suppose the idea is related to Victoria's Prince Consort. I'm inclined to buy it, but then, who am I?

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

My own thought is that, if you receive the likes of Boris Johnson and Liz Truss in one day it's almost inevitable that you will die two days after.

[vandermolen]

This was the front of The Times yesterday. The black border is only ever used for the death of the Monarch.