It was a sunny day with clouds drifting across the blue sky here in America. However, dark clouds fill the somber sky over Balmoral Castle, where Queen Elizabeth II was put on rest for her declining health. Prince Charles, his wife Camilla, and his sister Princess Anne rushed to visit the Queen. Sadly the rest of her large family did not make it to Balmoral Castle before the announcement: The Queen is Dead.
On April 21st, 1926, the society received a telegram announcement for the birth of Princess Elizabeth, and on September 8th, 2022, we received a tweet reading, "The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon." (Twitter) Her Majesty was long-reigning at ninety-six years old when she peacefully passed, surrounded by people she loves in her happiest estate.
First, you may be wondering, "Why Balmoral Castle?" I, too, was perplexed as to why she was resting at Balmoral and not Buckingham Palace. Well, thanks to the power of the internet, I was able to research and learn that The Queen's granddaughter Princess Eugenie shared, "I think Granny is the most happy there. I think she really, really loves the Highlands," referring to the attraction to Balmoral Castle.
Now, we are troubled by the question, "What happens now?" Here at ICHS, I, Caitlin Hollywood, have put together a short article to enlighten you. Immediately after the death of Queen Elizabeth II, her son Prince Charles ascended the throne and took the title of King. His second wife moved up with him and took the title Queen Consort; personally, I'm team Diana; they are highly expected to move into Buckingham Palace after their mourning period. The Privy Council has yet to set a coronation date, but as of September 10th, it was decided that the coronation will be televised.
Our heads hung low, and sorrow filled our hearts for the Royal Family. On Monday, September 19th, eleven days after the death of Her Late Majesty, an official state funeral was held. Prime Ministers, politicians, public figures, European Royals, and the entire Royal family is expected to be in attendance.
Tension arose when it was announced that Prince Harry would not wear his military uniform. Finally, after many press and media outbursts, Prince Harry was able to represent his ten years in the British Military. However, the media drama did not stop there; critics verbally attacked Harry and Meghan all day and days after. Personally, this is hard to hear Prince Harry just lost his grandmother, whom he was very close to, and people need to let him mourn in peace.
The Queen will be laid to rest in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle after she is slowly processed throughout the streets and towns. My heart broke into a thousand pieces when it was revealed that Prince George and Princess Charlotte were attending their great-grandmother's funeral. As royals, you are not supposed to show emotion, but seeing Princess Charlotte not being able to hold back her tears, broke me.
"What else changes?" Well, everyone moves up, not that Charles is King, William and Kate become Prince and Princess of Wales; their children were granted the HRH title, and HRH Princess Charlotte is next in line to the Princess Royal title (after Princess Anne passes). Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's children, Archie Mountbatten-Windsor and Lilibet Mountbatten-Windsor became Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
Now I will answer the most critical question of all, "What happens to the corgis?" Queen Elizabeth was known for having corgis throughout her reign; in total, she had 30 corgis. However, toward the end of her life, she had only two, Sandy and Muick. The two dogs will go on to live with Prince Andrew and Sarah, Duchess of York, those poor innocent dogs. My best intentions go out to all of you affected by the death of The Queen.
Works Cited
Burack, Emily. “What Happens next for the British Royal Family?” Town & Country, Town & Country, 11 Sept. 2022, www.townandcountrymag.com/society/tradition/a41123668/what-happens-next-for-the-british-royal-family/. Foster, Max, et al. “Who's on the Guest List for Queen Elizabeth II's State Funeral?” CNN, Cable News Network, 17 Sept. 2022, www.cnn.com/2022/09/14/uk/guest-list-queen-funeral-intl-scli-gbr.
Lisitza, Alexa. “A Look Back on Royal Baby Announcements.” TLC, 2021, www.tlc.com/life---relationships/a-look-back-on-royal-baby-announcements#:~:text=Queen%20Elizabeth%20%E2%80%93%20who%20was%20then,sent%20out%20by%20royal%20telegram. Macke, Johnni. “Prince Harry's Military Career: From Enlistment to Invictus Games.” Us Weekly, 15 Apr. 2022, www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/pictures/prince-harrys-military-career-from-enlistment-to-invictus-games/.
McRady Rachel. “Queen Elizabeth II's Death: Here's Who Saw Her before She Died.” Entertainment Tonight, Entertainment Tonight, 9 Sept. 2022, www.etonline.com/queen-elizabeth-iis-death-heres-who-saw-her-before-she-died-190521.
Stedman, Emily. “The Queen's Corgis: How Many Dogs Did the Queen Have and Who Will Look after Them Now?” GoodTo, GoodTo, 12 Sept. 2022, www.goodto.com/royal-news/queens-corgis-how-many-dogs-names-604421. Twitter. Royal Family (2022)