Greenwich Time on September 8, the reign of 69 years, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom died of illness. In the country of constitutional monarchy, the death of the monarch generally has a very small impact on the country, but for In the UK, the death of Elizabeth II was a heavy blow.
Queen Elizabeth II
First, let's take a look at the identity of Queen Elizabeth II
Queen Elizabeth II had dozens of titles during his lifetime, but there are three most important titles: King of Britain (Great Britain and United Kingdom of Northern Ireland King), the Kingdom of the Commonwealth and the former head of the Commonwealth (after 2018, Queen Elizabeth II gave way to her son Crown Prince Charles).
Queen Elizabeth II attends the Commonwealth Conference
Here we first need to figure out the relationship between the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth and the Commonwealth Kingdom. The United Kingdom refers to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, which consists of the royal territories of England, Scotland, Wales, , Northern Ireland, and the surrounding Isle of Man, , Jersey, Guernsey, .
Commonwealth is a sovereign state alliance formed by the former British colonies after independence. It was initially established to continue the influence of the British Empire in the original colonies. Currently, there are 56 countries.
Commonwealth flag
There are monarchical countries in the Commonwealth that still regard the British king as the head of state, and there are also non-monarchical countries such as India and South Africa. The monarchy state that still regards the British king as its head of state is also collectively known as the Commonwealth Kingdom. Although they regard the British king as their heads of state, they are essentially independent sovereign states.
After entering the 21st century, a total of 16 countries have regarded the King of England as their heads of state. After Barbados announced the implementation of the republic in 2021, there are currently only 15 sovereign states left in the Commonwealth Kingdom. But Barbados only withdrew from the Commonwealth Kingdom, not the Commonwealth, and its interests in the Commonwealth were not damaged. In recent years, some Australian politicians have been trying to push Australia to implement a republic, not to withdraw from the Commonwealth. It is only because Elizabeth II is highly regarded in Australia that Australia's republic has not been able to continue.
From these identities of Queen Elizabeth II, we can see that her death was not only because of the loss of the king in Britain, but also because of 14 countries. If the Commonwealth countries outside the Commonwealth Kingdom are included, her death involves 56 sovereign states.
Why is Queen Elizabeth II so respected?
When Elizabeth II was born, the throne of the king had nothing to do with her. Because her father was originally just the second heir to the royal family, her uncle was the first heir to the royal family. But an unexpected incident made Elizabeth the heir to the royal family. On December 11, 1936, the British king who had just succeeded to the throne for less than a year, Edward VIII gave up the throne in order to marry Mrs. Simpson, who had divorced. Elizabeth's father, George VI , became the first heir. The King of England. After George VI ascended the throne, Elizabeth naturally became the crown prince of Britain.
Portrait of Queen Elizabeth II when she was 7 years old
After Elizabeth became the crown prince, the clouds of the European war were already covered with clouds. After the outbreak of World War II , the European continent quickly fell. Britain became the forefront of the Western world's resistance to fascism, and naturally became the key target of Germany's attack. After Germany launched the British Air War against Britain, it was proposed to send Elizabeth and her sister to Canada for refuge. After hearing this proposal, Elizabeth's mother Queen Elizabeth said one of the most classic words during the World War II period, "The child cannot be without me, I cannot be without a king, and the king will not leave under any circumstances."
Queen Elizabeth II during World War II
1940 Elizabeth was the crown prince for the first time to broadcast the country, encouraging the British people to resist fascism together. In 1945, Princess Elizabeth convinced her father to allow her to directly participate in assisting the war. She joined the rear defense The security support force The Domestic Women's Auxiliary Territorial Service served as No. 230873 Elizabeth Windsor Honorary Lieutenant, who completed driving and car repair training and became the first formally trained car repairer in the royal family, five months later The promotion to honorary lower commander. His heroic performance during World War II won high prestige for Elizabeth.
After World War II, Elizabeth traveled to various countries of the Commonwealth as the crown prince, so he also gathered extremely high expectations among the Commonwealth countries. In 1952 Elizabeth visited New Zealand and Australia, and then went to Kenya for a visit. George VI suddenly died during Elizabeth's visit to Kenya. Elizabeth hurriedly returned to the country to succeed the throne. In June 1953, Elizabeth officially ascended the throne as the king of England, honored by Elizabeth : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : Queen II.
Before the crowning, Elizabeth specifically asked to embroider plants that represent the Commonwealth countries on the crowning dress, such as Tudor roses in England, thistle of Scotland, leeks in Wales, Irish Clover , Australia Acacia, Canadian maple leaves, New Zealand silver leaf fern, South Africa's squid , India and Ceylon lotus, as well as Pakistan's wheat, cotton and jute . This behavior made Elizabeth gained at the beginning of his ascension to the throne. The support of the people of the Commonwealth countries, including the United Kingdom.
Queen Elizabeth II's Ascension Ceremony
After Elizabeth ascends the throne, she has been maintaining the unity of the Commonwealth countries through her own efforts. After Elizabeth succeeded to the throne, she has been in power for 69 years. With 22 visits to Canada and 16 visits to Australia, she has her footsteps spread across every piece of Commonwealth. She has used her efforts to make the Commonwealth one of the most powerful groups in the world today. The people of the Commonwealth benefited from it.
Queen Elizabeth II visits Australia
In the Commonwealth system, the queen is not only a symbol of tradition, but also a symbol of democracy. In the past major events after her succession, Elizabeth II actively promoted the Commonwealth with her prestige. Progress of democracy within the system.
1965 Rhodesia (now called Zimbabwe ) white regime unilaterally declared independence, Prime Minister Ian Smith announced that Queen Elizabeth II was regarded as "Queen of Rhodesia", and Elizabeth II was concerned about this Anti-democratic behavior is decisively rejected.
What losses did Elizabeth II lose to the UK?
The previous article talks about Queen Elizabeth II's high prestige in the Commonwealth Kingdom and the Commonwealth, but this prestige does not all belong to the British royal family. After Queen Elizabeth II's death, Crown Prince Charles of the British royal family did not have this prestige and appeal at all.
Crown Prince Charles has been criticized for his marriage with DianaDian . It has greatly damaged the influence of the British royal family. It even once sparked discussions on the abolition of the monarchy in the UK. But under the great prestige of Elizabeth II, the sound soon disappeared. Soon after, the British royal family returned to its former influence.
Princess Diana
Originally, there have been constant voices about the abolition of the monarchy in various sovereign states in the Commonwealth Kingdom. The reason why it was not realized in the end was because of Elizabeth II's prestige. Now that Queen Elizabeth II has passed away, no one can influence the people of the Commonwealth Kingdom with his prestige, and the republican process in countries such as Australia will also accelerate. Britain's influence in the entire Commonwealth system will also be greatly damaged, which also means that the final glory of the British Empire is about to disappear.
Crown Prince Charles, who is about to ascend the throne,
