Quotable Elizabeth II: The 1 Quote That Explains Her Reign
“Our modern world places such heavy demands on our time and attention that the need to remember our responsibilities to others is greater than ever.”—That quote belongs to none other than Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, the late former Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms, uttered during her 2002 Christmas broadcast.
Queen Elizabeth II Lying in State Line. Image Credit: 19FortyFive/Jack Buckby.
Queen Elizabeth II sat on the throne for an incredible 70 years and 214 days, the longest reign of any British monarch, the second-longest of any sovereign, and the longest of any queen regnant in history. We now take a brief look at her remarkable life and career.
Birth and Childhood
Elizabeth Alexandra Mary (Princess Elizabeth of York) was born by Caesarean section on April 21. 1926, at her maternal grandfather’s London home, 17 Bruton Street in Mayfair, the first child of Prince Albert, Duke of York (later King George VI), and his wife, Elizabeth, Duchess of York (later Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother).
At the time of her birth, the reigning monarch of the British Crown was her paternal grandfather, King George V. Elizabeth’s sole sibling was Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon (Margaret Rose Windsor.
She made the first of her famous radio broadcasts at the age of 14 in 1940 (the year after the outbreak of WWII), reassuring the children of Britain “that in the end, all will be well; for God will care for us and give us victory and peace.”
Two years thereafter, upon being appointed colonel-in-chief of the Grenadier Guards by her father, Elizabeth made her first public appearance, inspecting the troops.
Young Adulthood World War II Service: Humble Ambulance Driver
Leadership by example is considered a key leadership virtue. Britain’s Royal Family is replete with members, past and present, who have led by example through their military service.
Upon the death of Queen Elizabeth II, the Monarch of the United Kingdom and 14 Commonwealth countries, Prince Charles, the Duke of Cornwall, immediately assumed the position of King.
Elizabeth II in Berlin 2015, aged 89. Creative Commons Image
For example, Prince Harry spent 10 years in Britain’s Army Air Corps (AAC), deploying to Afghanistan twice.
The former Prince Andrew performed heroically as a Sea King helicopter pilot for the Royal Navy during the 1982 Falklands War. And King Charles III (back when he was still Prince Charles, of course) served as a Royal Navy officer on surface ships, namely the guided missile destroyer HMS Norfolk (Pennant No. D21), frigate HMS Minerva (F45), frigate HMS Jupiter (F60), aircraft carrier HMS Hermes (R12), and coastal minehunter HMS Bronington (M1115).
As for Elizabeth, she didn’t serve in a frontline capacity, as her young adulthood took place back in the day when Western conventional armies simply didn’t send women into combat (the female snipers of the Red Army and combat pilots of the Soviet Air Force during WWII were a whole different story).
But she did carry her share of the load during her country’s time of need.
As Rob Lawrence (a former British Army officer and graduate of the UK’s Royal Military Academy Sandhurst) put it in a September 12, 2022, article for EMS1 titled “Remembering Queen Elizabeth, the most famous ambulance driver of them all,” he stated, “Perhaps, a final lesson to us is tied up with her WW2 service. At 18, then-princess Elizabeth joined the Women’s Auxiliary Territorial Service, training as a mechanic and military first aid truck driver … She did not hide away in exile or behind a closed door. Like her father, King George, she was out in the thick of it every day, setting the example and leading the way, and she, for one, didn’t mind being called an ambulance driver!”
Marriage to Mountbatten
Princess Elizabeth married Philip Mountbatten on November 20, 1947, at Westminster Abbey.
Although royal weddings are ofttimes arranged marriages of convenience rather than true love, biographer Adrienne Donica notes that “Elizabeth first met Philip, son of Prince Andrew of Greece, when she was only 13. She was smitten with him from the start. The two kept in touch over the years and eventually fell in love.”
The marriage lasted until Prince Philip’s death in 2021, and they parted ways, leaving four offspring: Charles, Anne, Andrew, and Edward.
Coronation and Reign
Suppose you will pardon the bad pun, her crowning achievement officially took place on June 2, 1953, at the age of 27 (at Westminster Abbey, just like her wedding).
However, she had actually assumed the responsibilities of the ruling monarch at the age of 25 on February 6, 1952, upon the death of her father, King George VI; at that point, she officially became Queen Elizabeth II, and her mother became Queen Mother.
Entire books have been written about the positive and negative aspects of Queen Elizabeth II’s 70-year reign, so for the sake of brevity, we’ll narrow it down to some major bullet points:
-The Troubles in Northern Ireland
-State visits to China in 1986, Russia in 1994, and the Republic of Ireland in 2011
-Meetings with five popes and fourteen US presidents
Death and Burial
Her Majesty died of “old age” at Balmoral Castle, Scotland, on September 8, 2022, at the age of 96. 11 days later, she was laid to rest at King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle.
Lasting Legacy
Too many examples to list here. To cite just one, there was “the world’s most famous ocean liner,” Queen Elizabeth 2 (“QE2”), which made her maiden voyage on May 2, 1969, and was retired in November 2008. In Western pop culture, she was humorously portrayed by Jeannette Charles in the Zucker Brothers’ 1988 classic comedy film “The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad.”
I never got to meet Her Majesty or even see her from a distance during any of my trips to London from 2011 to 2018. That said, as a member of the British Officers Club of Washington, D.C. (BOCDC), I got to pay tribute to the Queen’s last living birthday at a Garden Party at Lloyd House in Alexandria, Virginia, back in 2022.
The Queen Is Dead, Long Live The King.
About the Author: Christian D. Orr
Christian D. Orr is a Senior Editor for 19FortyFive. He is a former Air Force Security Forces officer, Federal law enforcement officer, and private military contractor (with assignments worked in Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Kosovo, Japan, Germany, and the Pentagon). Chris holds a B.A. in International Relations from the University of Southern California (USC) and an M.A. in Intelligence Studies (concentration in Terrorism Studies) from American Military University (AMU). He is also the author of the newly published book “Five Decades of a Fabulous Firearm: Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Beretta 92 Pistol Series.”
