(NewsNation) — Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-serving British monarch who reigned for more than 70 years through major political changes, has died. She was 96.
Buckingham Palace said she died on Thursday afternoon at Balmoral Castle, her summer residence in Scotland, where members of the royal family had rushed to be by her side.
According to the line of succession, the Queen’s 73-year-old son Charles automatically became King, even though the coronation might not take place for months. His office announced he will be known as King Charles III. Charles’ second wife, Camilla, will be known as the Queen Consort.
“We mourn profoundly the passing of a cherished Sovereign and a much-loved Mother,” a statement from His Majesty the King said. “I know her loss will be deeply felt throughout the country, the Realms and the Commonwealth, and by countless people around the world.”
Elizabeth’s funeral is expected to be held at Westminster Abbey following the traditional observance of a national 10-day period of mourning and she is expected to be laid to rest in a private burial at St. George’s Chapel, on the grounds of Windsor Castle.
The official website of the royal family went black, displaying only a portrait of the queen and a brief message about her passing.
“During this period of mourning and change, my family and I will be comforted and sustained by our knowledge of the respect and deep affection in which The Queen was so widely held,” King Charles III said.
President Joe Biden called her a “stateswoman of unmatched dignity and constancy who deepened the bedrock alliance between the United Kingdom and the United States.”
British Prime Minister Liz Truss, appointed by the queen just 48 hours earlier, pronounced the country “devastated” and called Elizabeth “the rock on which modern Britain was built.”
“The death of her majesty the queen is a huge shock to the nation and to the world,” Truss said.
Pope Francis sent his condolences to King Charles III and the people of the United Kingdom and praised Queen Elizabeth’s “life of unstinting service to the good of the Nation and the Commonwealth.”
A revered public figure, Elizabeth ascended to the throne at the age of 25 in 1952 and would spend the next seven decades devoting herself to a life of public service.
The early years of her reign saw the continued transformation and decline of the British Empire, beginning with the decolonization of African countries in the 1960s and 1970s. Later, Canada, Australia and New Zealand severed their constitutional links with Britain in the 1980s, and Hong Kong was returned to China in 1997.
She endured through 15 prime ministers, from Winston Churchill to Truss, becoming an institution and an icon.
The leader of that republican movement, Malcolm Turnbull, said 18 years after the fact when he met the queen as prime minister that “even Republicans like myself can be, and in my case are, very strong Elizabethans as well.”
When Elizabeth was 21, almost five years before she became queen, she promised the people of Britain and the Commonwealth that “my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service.”
Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor was born April 21, 1926, in Mayfair, London, and was the first child of the Duke and Duchess of York, who later became King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.
She spent her early years at 145 Piccadilly in London, and at the country homes of her paternal grandparents before moving to Royal Lodge when she was 6 years old. She was educated privately at home and grew to love horses, an affection that would come to define part of her public persona.
Upon the abdication of her uncle King Edward VIII, Elizabeth became first in line to the throne in 1937 as heir presumptive. She studied constitutional history and law as preparation for her future role.
During World War II, Elizabeth and her sister spent their days at Windsor Castle, where they would often put on pantomimes for entertainment.
She married Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, in November 1947, and the couple produced four children, eight grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. The couple lived in Malta from 1949-1951, where Philip served as a naval officer in the Mediterranean Fleet. They were married for 73 years until his death in April 2021.
Elizabeth ascended to the throne on Feb. 6, 1952, following the death of her father, George VI, and was crowned on June 2, 1953, in Westminster Abbey.
The queen’s reign began with her longest-ever Commonwealth tour, a seven-month round-the-world trip that began in November 1953 and covered more than 40,000 miles.
Through countless public events, she probably met more people than anyone in history. Her image, which adorned stamps, coins and banknotes, was among the most reproduced in the world.
But her inner life and opinions remained mostly an enigma. Of her personality, the public saw relatively little. She rarely seemed happier than during the Royal Ascot racing week and she never tired of the companionship of her beloved Welsh corgi dogs.
Despite being one of the world’s wealthiest people, Elizabeth had a reputation for frugality and common sense. She was known as a monarch who turned off lights in empty rooms, a country woman who didn’t flinch from strangling pheasants.
A reassuring presence at home, she was also an emblem of Britain abroad — a form of soft power, consistently respected whatever the vagaries of the country’s political leaders on the world stage.
Queen Elizabeth II is seen at the Chichester Theatre while visiting West Sussex on November 30, 2017 in Chichester, United Kingdom. (Photo by Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images)
FILE – In this April 1966 file photo Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II is seen during the State Opening of Parliament, London, England. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, has died. She was 96. Buckingham Palace made the announcement in a statement on Thursday Sept. 8, 2022. (AP Photo, File)
FILE – Princess Elizabeth, centre, age 11, appears on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after the coronation of her father, King George VI, right, in London, May 12, 1937. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, has died. She was 96. Buckingham Palace made the announcement in a statement on Thursday Sept. 8, 2022. (AP Photo, File)
FILE – Britain’s Queen Mary, left, rides in her carriage with Princess Elizabeth and Queen Elizabeth, right, after the trooping the colour ceremony in honour of king George V 68th Birthday, in London, June 3rd, 1933. The queen was christened Elizabeth Alexandra Mary of York, in honor of her mother, paternal grandmother and paternal great-grandmother. But as a child, she was endearingly known as young Lilibet by her family said to be because she couldn’t pronounce Elizabeth properly. (AP Photo, File)
FILE – In this June. 2, 1953 file photo, Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh wave to supporters from the balcony at Buckingham Palace, following her coronation at Westminster Abbey, London. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, has died. She was 96. Buckingham Palace made the announcement in a statement on Thursday Sept. 8, 2022. (AP Photo/Leslie Priest, File)
FILE – Britain’s Prime Minister Anthony Eden, left, fresh from his victory over the Labor Party opposition in the British “frogman” incident, smiles and bows as he welcomes Queen Elizabeth II on her arrival at London’s Guildhall on May 15, 1956. In seven decades on the throne, Queen Elizabeth II saw 15 British prime ministers come and go, from Winston Churchill to Margaret Thatcher to Boris Johnson to Liz Truss. (AP Photo, File)
FILE – British Queen Elizabeth greets Prime Minister Harold Wilson at a reception in County Hall, Westminster, London on Nov. 11, 1964. In seven decades on the throne, Queen Elizabeth II saw 15 British prime ministers come and go, from Winston Churchill to Margaret Thatcher to Boris Johnson to Liz Truss. (AP Photo, File)
FILE – Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II talks with British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, at a reception for the 39 heads of delegations attending the Commonwealth Conference in Lusaka, Zambia, Aug. 1, 1979. In seven decades on the throne, Queen Elizabeth II saw 15 British prime ministers come and go, from Winston Churchill to Margaret Thatcher to Boris Johnson to Liz Truss. (AP Photo, File)
FILE – In this July 25, 1976 file photo, Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II reacts as as the open cart in which they were riding momentarily scrapes the bottom while negotiating a hump over railway tracks during a tour of the Olympic Games facilities, in Bromont, Quebec, Canada, site of equestrian competitions. Prince Edward sits foreground centre and Prince Andrew background centre. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, has died. She was 96. Buckingham Palace made the announcement in a statement on Thursday Sept. 8, 2022. (AP Photo/J. Walter Green, File)
FILE – Britain’s Princess Elizabeth aged 16 at an unidentified event, April 7, 1942. During World War II, young Princess Elizabeth briefly became known as No. 230873, Second Subaltern Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor of the Auxiliary Transport Service No. 1.(AP Photo, File)
FILE – Princess Elizabeth on horseback with the riding master in Windsor Great Park, Windsor, England, in April 1935.Like many royals of her time and before, Elizabeth never went to a public school and was never exposed to other students. Instead, she was educated at home with Margaret, her younger sister. . (AP Photo, File)
Princess Elizabeth takes her pet dog for a walk in Hyde Park, London, on Feb. 26. 1936. It’s widely known that Elizabeth loved corgi dogs, Princess Diana reportedly called the animals the queen’s “moving carpet” because they accompanied her everywhere. Elizabeth was photographed hugging one of the pooches as far back as 1936, aged 10, and was given a corgi named Susan as an 18th birthday present. (AP Photo, File)
FILE – In this Tuesday, July 10, 2018 file photo, members of the royal family gather on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, with from left, Prince Charles, Camilla the Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Andrew, Queen Elizabeth II, Meghan the Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry, Prince William and Kate the Duchess of Cambridge, as they watch a flypast of Royal Air Force aircraft pass over Buckingham Palace in London. Prince Charles has been preparing for the crown his entire life. Now, that moment has finally arrived. Charles, the oldest person to ever assume the British throne, became king on Thursday Sept. 8, 2022, following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham, File)
FILE – In this photo dated May 1977, U.S. President Jimmy Carter, right, and Queen Elizabeth II stand with French President Valery Giscard d’Estaing, at Buckingham Palace in London. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, died Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, after 70 years on the throne. She was 96. (AP Photo, File)
FILE – U.S. President Ronald Reagan, on Centennial, and Queen Elizabeth II, on Burmese, go horseback riding in the grounds of Windsor Castle, England, June 8, 1982. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, died Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, after 70 years on the throne. She was 96. (AP Photo/Bob Daugherty, File)
FILE – In this Monday, April 17, 2000 file photo, Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, right talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, prior to a private audience at Windsor Castle, on his first visit to the West as Russian President, in Windsor, England. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, has died. She was 96. Buckingham Palace made the announcement in a statement on Thursday Sept. 8, 2022. (Fiona Hanson/Pool Photo via AP, File)
FILE – President George H. W. Bush escorts Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip on the field at Memorial Stadium on May 15, 1991, in Baltimore, before the Orioles played the Oakland A’s. The Queen watched her first baseball game. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, died Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, after 70 years on the throne. She was 96. (AP Photo/Greg Gibson, File)
FILE – President George W. Bush, left, and first lady Laura Bush right, walk with Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, as they leave Buckingham Palace in London, Nov. 21, 2003. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, died Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, after 70 years on the throne. She was 96. (Kirsty Wigglesworth/Pool Photo via AP, File)
FILE – Queen Elizabeth II, and U.S. President Barack Obama attend a state banquet in Buckingham Palace, London, May 24, 2011. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, died Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, after 70 years on the throne. She was 96. (AP Photo/Lewis Whyld, Pool, File)
FILE – In this June 13, 2021 file photo US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden smile while standing with Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II watching a Guard of Honour march past before their meeting at Windsor Castle near London. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, has died. She was 96. Buckingham Palace made the announcement in a statement on Thursday Sept. 8, 2022. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham, Pool, File)
FILE – In this Oct. 14, 2019 file photo, Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, with Prince Charles, delivers the Queen’s Speech at the official State Opening of Parliament in London. Prince Charles has been preparing for the crown his entire life. Now, that moment has finally arrived. Charles, the oldest person to ever assume the British throne, became king on Thursday Sept. 8, 2022, following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II. (Victoria Jones/Pool via AP, File)
FILE – In this April 17, 2021 file photo Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II sits alone in St. George’s Chapel during the funeral of Prince Philip, the man who had been by her side for 73 years, at Windsor Castle, Windsor, England. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, has died. She was 96. Buckingham Palace made the announcement in a statement on Thursday Sept. 8, 2022. (Jonathan Brady/Pool via AP, File)
FILE – In this Tuesday, June 21, 2011 file photo, schoolchildren wave Union flags as Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II leaves St Paul’s Cathedral in London after attending a service to celebrate its Tercentenary. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, has died. She was 96. Buckingham Palace made the announcement in a statement on Thursday Sept. 8, 2022. (AP Photo/Akira Suemori, Pool, File)
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Louis stand on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service. (Alastair Grant/Pool Photo via AP)
Britain’s Queen Elizabeth arrives for a Royal Garden Party at Buckingham Palace in London, Wednesday, May 29, 2019. (Yui Mok/Pool Photo via AP, File)
Queen Elizabeth II talks to guests at an evening reception for members of the Diplomatic Corps at Buckingham Palace on December 11, 2019 in London, England. (Photo by Victoria Jones – WPA Pool/Getty Images)
FILE – Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II waits in the Drawing Room before receiving Liz Truss for an audience at Balmoral, in Scotland, Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022, where Truss was invited to become Prime Minister and form a new government. Buckingham Palace says Queen Elizabeth II is under medical supervision as doctors are “concerned for Her Majesty’s health.” The announcement comes a day after the 96-year-old monarch canceled a meeting of her Privy Council and was told to rest.(Jane Barlow/Pool Photo via AP, File)
FILE – Queen Elizabeth II speaks during an audience at Windsor Castle where she met the incoming and outgoing Defence Service Secretaries, Wednesday Feb. 16, 2022. (Steve Parsons, Pool via AP, File)
FILE – Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II gestures in front of Britain’s Prime Minister Gordon Brown, back center, after a group photograph of G20 leaders at Buckingham Palace in London, Wednesday, April 1, 2009. At left China’s President Hu Jintao, at right in background, President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso. In seven decades on the throne, Queen Elizabeth II saw 15 British prime ministers come and go, from Winston Churchill to Margaret Thatcher to Boris Johnson to Liz Truss. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, Pool, FIle)
FILE – Queen Elizabeth II attends an armed forces act of loyalty parade in the gardens of the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh, on June 28, 2022. Queen Elizabeth II will remain in Scotland, where she is taking her summer break, to receive Britain’s outgoing Prime Minster Boris Johnson and his successor next week, Buckingham Palace officials said Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022. (Jane Barlow/Pool via AP)
FILE – Queen Elizabeth II stands on the balcony during the Platinum Jubilee Pageant at the Buckingham Palace in London, Sunday, June 5, 2022, on the last of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. Queen Elizabeth II will skip the Braemar Gathering, a popular Highland Games event, as she struggles with issues getting around. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, Pool, File)
FILE – Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II smiles while receiving the President of Switzerland Ignazio Cassis and his wife Paola Cassis during an audience at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England, Thursday, April 28, 2022. Britain is getting ready for a party featuring mounted troops, solemn prayers — and a pack of dancing mechanical corgis. The nation will celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s 70 years on the throne this week with four days of pomp and pageantry in central London. (Dominic Lipinski/Pool Photo via AP, File)
FILE – Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II welcomes newly elected leader of the Conservative party Boris Johnson during an audience at Buckingham Palace, London, Wednesday July 24, 2019 where she invited him to become Prime Minister and form a new government. British media say Prime Minister Boris Johnson has agreed to resign on Thursday, July 7 2022, ending an unprecedented political crisis over his future. (Victoria Jones/Pool via AP, File)
From left, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall Prince Charles, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince George, Prince William, Princess Charlotte, Prince Louis and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge stand on the balcony, at the end of the Platinum Jubilee Pageant held outside Buckingham Palace, in London, Sunday June 5, 2022, on the last of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The pageant will be a carnival procession up The Mall featuring giant puppets and celebrities that will depict key moments from Queen Elizabeth II’s seven decades on the throne. (Roland Hoskins/Pool Photo via AP)
FILE – In this Thursday, Oct. 27, 2011 file photo, Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, center, watches Aboriginal dancers at Clontarf Aboriginal College in Perth, Australia. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, has died. She was 96. Buckingham Palace made the announcement in a statement on Thursday Sept. 8, 2022. (Sharon Smith, Pool Photo via AP, File)
Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II smiles as she attends at the Royal Windsor Horse Show, Windsor, England, Friday May 13, 2022. The Queen’s appearance at the Royal Windsor Horse Show came a few days after she delegated the opening of Parliament to Prince Charles. (Steve Parsons/PA via AP)
FILE – In this July 8, 2021 file photo Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II visits the set of the long running television series Coronation Street, in Manchester, England. Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, has died. She was 96. Buckingham Palace made the announcement in a statement on Thursday Sept. 8, 2022. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell, File)
FILE – Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II watches the red arrows fly over to mark her official birthday at Windsor Castle, Windsor, England, Saturday June 12, 2021. Elizabeth was born on April 21, 1926, but it was sometimes confusing for the public to know when to celebrate. There was no universally fixed day for her “official birthday”: It’s either the first, second or third Saturday in June, and was decided by the government. (Chris Jackson/Pool via AP, File)