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Two days after Liz Truss took over as the third female Prime Minister, United Kingdom (UK) lost her longest-serving monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. The Queen died peacefully on September 8, 2022, at her Scottish estate in Balmoral, at the age of 96. Arrangements for her final journey to London and state funeral, which comes up on Monday, September 19, 2022, at Westminster Abbey, are covered in a 10-day plan code-named Operation London Bridge. World leaders and dignitaries are expected to attend. The day will be marked as a public holiday across the United Kingdom. The union flags will be flown at half-mast on government buildings, royal residences, and UK posts overseas.
Born as Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor on April 21, 1926, at Mayfair, London, Queen Elizabeth II ascended the throne on February 6, 1952 following the death of her father, King George VI, when she was on a visit to Kenya to represent him. She was crowned on June 2, 1953 at Westminster Abbey at the age of 27. During her reign, which spanned 70 years, she saw 15 prime ministers starting with Winston Churchill and ending with the incumbent, Ms Truss. Under her, Britain experienced transition from empire to Commonwealth, end of the Cold War and exit from the European Union also known as Brexit.
Queen Elizabeth II got married to her third cousin, Prince Philip, at Westminster Abbey on November 20, 1947. After the marriage, Philip, who served in the Royal Navy during the war with the Nazi Germany, took the title Duke of Edinburgh. The marriage lasted for 74 years, the longest in British royal history. The Duke died on April 9, 2021 at the age of 99. They had four children: King Charles III, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward. They also had eight grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.
Known to have brought some reforms to the monarchy, the Queen attended many public events and visited many countries, especially the Commonwealth countries. She first visited Nigeria in 1956 and later returned to the country in 2003 when Nigeria hosted the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM). In 1960, when Nigeria gained her independence, it was Princess Alexandra of Kent that she sent to represent her.
A lot of reactions have trailed her death. Her son, who is now King Charles III, described her death as a moment of great sadness for him and his family. He said the loss would be deeply felt throughout the country, the Commonwealth, and by countless people around the world. British Prime Minister, Liz Truss, described her as the rock upon which modern Britain was built. The President of the United States of America, Joe Biden, recalled her solidarity with his country during the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the US. French President, Emmanuel Macron, described her as a kind-hearted Queen and friend of France. Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, sees her as one of his favourite people in the world.
African leaders are not left out in the tributes to the Queen. President Muhammadu Buhari said the story of modern Nigeria would never be complete without a chapter on Queen Elizabeth II who he described as a towering global personality and an outstanding leader. President William Ruto of Kenya described her leadership of the Commonwealth as admirable. South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa, described her as an extraordinary and world-renowned public figure who lived a remarkable life. Ghanaian President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, said the Queen would be missed for her “inspiring presence, her calm, her steadiness, and above all, her great love and belief in the higher purpose of the Commonwealth of Nations.”
The Queen’s death, nevertheless, brought back flashes of the scars of the colonial past as many see the monarchy as the face and symbol of colonialism. As of the time she mounted the throne in 1952, many countries in Africa, Asia and the Pacific islands were under the British imperial power. That era was largely defined by enslavement and some other forms of maltreatment for the colonised countries. A South African opposition political party, Economic Freedom Fighters, said the death of the Queen was a reminder of a very tragic period in South Africa in particular and the whole of Africa in general. According to the EFF, the Queen was the “head of an institution built up, sustained and living off a brutal legacy of dehumanisation of millions of people across the world.” Many people expected that Britain or the Queen should have apologised for these crimes just as the country apologised in 2013 for the torture and killing of thousands of Mau Mau rebels and others in detention camps in Kenya.
However, it is a fact that Queen Elizabeth II was instrumental to decolonisation as over 20 countries gained independence during her reign. We commiserate with the Royal family, the government and people of Britain over her death. We wish King Charles III, who has taken over as the new monarch, a successful reign and urge him to help in bringing peace to the world.
