The nation mourns the loss of our queen
Our nation is heavy-hearted with a sense of profound loss and sadness at the passing of our Queen, Elizabeth II.
I’m thankful for her unwavering lifelong service; she has been a constant and positive influence in an ever changing world, guiding us with dignity through good times and bad. She will forever remain in our hearts and will go down in history as the greatest monarch of all time.
I was struck by how she held true to her promise given in an address to the public on her 21st birthday, “I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service..”. Testament to this is that only days before her passing she was meeting our new prime minister, the 15th of her 70 year reign, Liz Truss. Her first prime minister was Winston Churchill; this puts into perspective the length of her reign and the changes both socially and politically that she has witnessed.
Proudly displayed on a side table in our lounge, is a photograph of my parents taken outside Buckingham Palace, which was taken 22 years ago when they attended the Queen’s garden party. I have grown up hoping that one day, I too would be lucky enough to meet the Queen, sadly this wasn’t to be.
Whilst the Commonwealth and countries around the world united in expressing their condolences and sadness at the loss of the Queen, our nation mourned her passing with tributes of flowers which blanketed the grounds outside the gates of Balmoral, Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and the London parks. People patiently waited in 7 mile long queues to pay their respects to our queen as she lay in state at Westminster Hall. All this was happening as a backdrop to the accession of our new king, Charles III. I was shocked at how quickly this process of accession and proclamation happened. I was conscious that I was witnessing history as it unfurled.
It was evident that King Charles, who is my grandparents' age, still grieving his mother’s passing, looked very tired as he travelled around the United Kingdom to be proclaimed as king.
I have every confidence in our new king and share many of his concerns about our fragile environment. He has always used his public voice to raise awareness of environmental issues. I hope that being king will not stifle him. Only this week it has been suggested that he should no longer attend COP27, at which he was going to speak.
Rest in peace Queen Elizabeth the Great. Long live the King.
Charles Wilsher, Y8
I’m thankful for her unwavering lifelong service; she has been a constant and positive influence in an ever changing world, guiding us with dignity through good times and bad. She will forever remain in our hearts and will go down in history as the greatest monarch of all time.
I was struck by how she held true to her promise given in an address to the public on her 21st birthday, “I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service..”. Testament to this is that only days before her passing she was meeting our new prime minister, the 15th of her 70 year reign, Liz Truss. Her first prime minister was Winston Churchill; this puts into perspective the length of her reign and the changes both socially and politically that she has witnessed.
Proudly displayed on a side table in our lounge, is a photograph of my parents taken outside Buckingham Palace, which was taken 22 years ago when they attended the Queen’s garden party. I have grown up hoping that one day, I too would be lucky enough to meet the Queen, sadly this wasn’t to be.
Whilst the Commonwealth and countries around the world united in expressing their condolences and sadness at the loss of the Queen, our nation mourned her passing with tributes of flowers which blanketed the grounds outside the gates of Balmoral, Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and the London parks. People patiently waited in 7 mile long queues to pay their respects to our queen as she lay in state at Westminster Hall. All this was happening as a backdrop to the accession of our new king, Charles III. I was shocked at how quickly this process of accession and proclamation happened. I was conscious that I was witnessing history as it unfurled.
It was evident that King Charles, who is my grandparents' age, still grieving his mother’s passing, looked very tired as he travelled around the United Kingdom to be proclaimed as king.
I have every confidence in our new king and share many of his concerns about our fragile environment. He has always used his public voice to raise awareness of environmental issues. I hope that being king will not stifle him. Only this week it has been suggested that he should no longer attend COP27, at which he was going to speak.
Rest in peace Queen Elizabeth the Great. Long live the King.
Charles Wilsher, Y8