Queen Elizabeth II, at the age of 96, has passed away.
Her son, Charles, is now King of the United Kingdom and its Commonwealth realms, while his first-born son, Prince William, is now heir apparent.
The Royal Family announced at 12:30 p.m. that “The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon.”
The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon.
The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/VfxpXro22W
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) September 8, 2022
She had served as Queen for 70 years, becoming the first British monarch of any nation to celebrate their platinum jubilee.
During the Queen’s four-day celebration in early June, she only made two brief appearances to wave from her balcony due to health issues.
One of her last official actions was to meet with the newly-minted prime minister, Liz Truss, who had posted on Twitter once news broke of the Queen’s health today:
“The whole country will be deeply concerned by the news from Buckingham Palace this lunchtime. My thoughts — and the thoughts of people across our United Kingdom — are with Her Majesty The Queen and her family at this time.”
Members of the Royal Family had been in the process of rushing to be by the side of Queen Elizabeth II following her being placed under medical supervision in Scotland.
“The Queen’s doctors are concerned for Her Majesty’s health and have recommended she remain under medical supervision,” stated a palace spokesperson at the time.
The 96-year-old monarch’s health had become a subject of concern recently as she had pulled out of several key public events because of her ongoing mobility issues.
Now-King Charles had been assuming some of her royal duties. Other members of the Royal Family had also been making public appearances on the Queen’s behalf.
King Charles along with his wife, Camilla, and sister, Princess Anne, were with the Queen at her summer residence in Scotland when she died. So was Prince William, Charles’ eldest son, and the Queen’s second son, Prince Andrew.
Charles’ second son, Prince Harry, was reported to be en route.
The Queen’s third son, Prince Edward, was also traveling to Balmoral, along with his wife, Sophie.
