By The Big Magazine Staff
LONDON (AP) — Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II has died, ending a historic 70-year reign. She was 96.
The Queen died at Balmoral, her beloved palace in the Scottish Highlands, which was purchased by her great-great-grandfather Prince Albert for Queen Victoria in 1852. She was surrounded by her children and grand-children.
Prince Charles, her eldest son, succeeds her.
The Queen’s death comes just under 18 months and after that of her husband, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who died on April 9, 2021.
Earlier this year, the Queen celebrated her Platinum Jubilee, which commemorated a record-breaking 70 years on the throne. In a rare personal statement to mark the occasion of her accession, she said: “It is a day that, even after 70 years, I still remember as much for the death of my father, King George VI, as for the start of my reign.”
Queen Elizabeth II was been placed under medical supervision this morning because doctors were “concerned for Her Majesty’s health,” Buckingham Palace said Thursday, as members of the royal family traveled to Scotland to be at the bedside of the 96-year-old monarch.
The announcement by the palace came a day after the queen canceled a virtual meeting of her Privy Council when doctors advised her to rest following a full day of events on Tuesday, when she formally asked Liz Truss to become Britain’s prime minister.
“Following further evaluation this morning, the Queen’s doctors are concerned for Her Majesty’s health and have recommended she remain under medical supervision,” a palace spokesperson said, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with customary policy. “The Queen remains comfortable and at Balmoral.”
The palace declined to provide further details about the queen’s condition, but there were other worrying signs, as Truss was interrupted on the floor of the House of Commons to note her condition and family members canceled long-planned engagements to travel to the Highlands.
Prince Charles, the heir to the throne, along with his wife, Camilla, and sister, Princess Anne, were with the queen at Balmoral Castle, her summer residence in Scotland. Prince William, Charles’ eldest son, was also en route to Balmoral, as was his brother, Prince Harry, his wife, Meghan, Prince Andrew and the Earl and Countess of Wessex.
The gathering of the House of Windsor comes just three months after people across Britain paused over a long holiday weekend to celebrate the queen’s 70 years on the throne. While crowds of cheering, flag-waving fans filled the streets around Buckingham Palace throughout four days of festivities, the queen herself made only two brief appearances on the palace balcony to wave to her subjects.
Elizabeth has increasingly handed over duties to Charles and other members of the royal family in recent months as she recovered from a bout of COVID-19, began using a cane and struggled to get around.
Tributes have poured in from around the world with crowds gathering under umbrellas outside Buckingham Palace in London.
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