Queen Elizabeth

Queen Elizabeth (1926-2022) Queen Elizabeth was born on April 21, 1926 and was named Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor. She was the daughter of George VI and Queen Elizabeth I. Her father was second in line to the throne after his brother King Edward the VIII. She was ten years old when her grandfather King George V passed away. Subsequently, her uncle and father took the throne. She ascended to the throne following her father on February 6, 1952 at the age of 25. She married her Prince Philip Mountbatten, the Duke of Edinburgh and was the apple of his eye for 74 years from 1947 until the time of his death in 2021. She is currently the Queen of the United Kingdom and 14 other commonwealth realms. Queen Elizabeth has reigned as a constitutional Monarch through many transitions and changes such as the decolonization of Africa, the unrest in Northern Ireland, and the withdrawal from the European Union. The Royal family has ridden the wave of social approval as well as disapproval. Her family has suffered in many of the same ways that other families have struggled in modern times, and her family members have gone through infidelity, separation, divorce, and tragic early deaths.

I typed Queen Elizabeth because, through it all, she has remained steadfast in her commitment to provide leadership to the British people and to the people of her protectorates. When she became Queen, she pledged these words, “I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong.” Rarely do we see people honor their commitments with such tenacity in both their public and private life. She has served to honor her commitment to Great Britain for seventy years. She always preferred the practical to the stylish and has usually been seen in solid colors and overquotes when outdoors. She did prefer however to wear lavish and decorative hats which enabled her to be seen easily in crowds. I included three of my favorite quotes as background to her portrait. They are as follows. “Let us not take ourselves too seriously. None of us has a monopoly on wisdom!” Another of my favorite quotes that remind us all, that besides the fact that she is the Queen, she experiences aspects of her life like all of us. She once said, “There are long periods when life seems a small, dull round; a petty business with no point, and then suddenly, we are caught up in some great event, which gives us a glimpse of the solid and durable foundations of our existence.” She also understood grief and loss as was demonstrated in her statement, “Grief is the price we pay for love.” Queen Elizabeth exemplifies many of the qualities I admire. A love of her family as well as commitment and dedication to the greater good in society.