On The Passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth ll

On the passing of Her Majesty we offer our condolences to the Royal Family, the People of the Realm and to our British Permies Family.
Long live King Charles lll

From Canada - we will miss her. She's been my Queen all my life. She saw so many changes during her reign and weathered many storms. It was her time, so I will not be sad for her passing, but I will miss her.

Not a job I would fancy, and she did it with dignity for 70 years.
I planted three English Walnut trees earlier this year to commemorate her Jubilee. Now they will also commemorate the accession of her son.


The Queen is dead, long live the King.

Of course, she was Queen Elizabeth I of Scotland, since the earlier Queen Elizabeth was never Queen of Scotland, as I was gently corrected by one of my customers during the Diamond Jubilee year ten years ago.

She has always been a trusted and valued friend to us in Canada.

Even though, in our laws, her direct role was symbolic, I think she provided, by her personal example of duty and graciousness, a tangible expression of the steady pendulum that regulates the wild gyrations and machinations of our democratic government.

So, I feel her passing personally, as if I have lost a member of the extended family, a perceptive and thoughtful Aunt whose shoes no-one could hope to fill. We are diminished today.

Rest well, ma'am, and thank you.

It is remarkable that she could command so much respect within the UK, across the Commonwealth and around the world.  In the United States of course there is no Monarch, but today the halls buzzed about her passing and the news channels are singly focused.

My condolences to those who called her “their” Queen, but her influence was spread wide.

Eric

Condolences to those across the pond.

Ya know.... I always sorta thought of her as the worlds grandma. She looked a lot like mine. A sparkle in her eye and a knowing smile. I think for the world it is really sounding the end of an era. I haven't thought these thoughts since the passing of my grandfather a few years ago, who was in his 90's as well. He was on the Missouri when Japan surrendered. Time. It catches up with you eventually, I suppose.

Rest in peace, Elizabeth.

I cried a bit today, and I'm still tearing up. I've never been to England or any of the Commonwealth (other than Canada for like a total of 2 days as a kid). But, the Queen is the same age as my Grandpa, who  passed away two years ago. I've always respected and revered her, and her passing is truly the passing of an era.

Growing up, all our coins here in the US had guys on them. But, living close to the Canadian boarder, we ended up with Canadian pennies, complete with her Majesty's image. I loved playing with them and counting them. I still have every single Canadian coin I ever found. In a world filled with images of men in power, there was Queen Elizabeth. She was a woman unashamed of her grey hair, a woman who commanded respect across the globe, a woman who has united her country, and frequently the world. She is greatly missed.

It saddens me so much that the Second Elizabethan Era has ended.

She was queen when I was born; I have never known another monarch. How strange it is to have a king now. It seemed as if she would go on for ever although realistically, we know that is impossible. RIP your majesty and long live King Charles.

Nicole, I like the way you phrased that: "The Second Elizabethan Age."  Something tells me that her lifetime will be remembered by that phrase or something similar.  She rises to the top, compared only to the First Elizabethan Age and the Victorian Age.

Eric

Eric Hanson wrote:Nicole, I like the way you phrased that: "The Second Elizabethan Age."  Something tells me that her lifetime will be remembered by that phrase or something similar.  She rises to the top, compared only to the First Elizabethan Age and the Victorian Age.

Who knows British History? Are there any "Ages" named after Kings? Eric's comment got me wondering - is it because we don't expect women to be able to reign so long? Or live so long?

Jay,

I am not sufficiently versed in British history to speak as its authority, but I can say that those three monarch's stood out.  

Elizabeth I remained unmarried.  This was a deliberate act as in her day, England did could not yet project political influence outside the borders of Britain.  In fact, (I am grossly summarizing here, so anyone who wants to correct me, please jump in) as Elizabeth I was unmarried at the time of her coronation she was expected to marry another king or other powerful nobleman from another, more powerful nation as a sort of alliance-forming act.  Elizabeth I knew that this deal would mean that England would be the junior partner in any such arrangement and therefore remained unmarried (the Virgin Queen--the state of Virginia is named after her).  Ultimately, through a fascinating-to-me story, England remained not only independent of Continental influence, but prospered.

Queen Victoria was the longest serving monarch in British history (and in deed, one of the longest in the world) until Elizabeth II.  She was also something of an example of British manners and customs that became world-renowned (also contrasted drastically with the French, but that again is a discussion for a different day).

Queen Elizabeth II is presently the longest reigning monarch in British history.  She also, somewhat but not entirely like her predecessor Elizabeth I, reigned without a king.  Her husband, through royal politics that I will not pretend to completely understand, remained the title of Prince, or Crown Prince, but did not become King.

So there is a very, very brief *possible* explanation as to why the "ages" are known for Queens but not Kings.

Food for thought,

Eric

Ages in British history are often Golden Ages - ages of self importance, great cultural and industrial advancement and thrashing of other nations in the monarchial hobby called war. Helps if it’s sandwiched between periods of decline or civil unrest

From what I remember (school boy history)

Elizabethan - age of Expansion, lots of victories against the Spanish, Drake, Raleigh, Shakespeare. Came after War of the Roses, Tudor unrest and before civil war.

Georgian - legacy of great architecture (When you mention Georgian in the UK it’s normally in the context of architecture)

Victorian - massive industrial expansion, economic expansion, cultural expansion and colonisation culminating in massive British Empire and ruler of the seas.

Edwardian - Period of stability and liberalisation, especially for women with a vast empire where the sun never set and before Victoria’s grand children got bored and started World War I.

I’ve moved the rest of my post to the cider press . . .

Jay Angler wrote:

Eric Hanson wrote:Nicole, I like the way you phrased that: "The Second Elizabethan Age."  Something tells me that her lifetime will be remembered by that phrase or something similar.  She rises to the top, compared only to the First Elizabethan Age and the Victorian Age.

Who knows British History? Are there any "Ages" named after Kings? Eric's comment got me wondering - is it because we don't expect women to be able to reign so long? Or live so long?

The way I feel today "age" seems like the right word.

They usually are called era or period

Georgian era, Victorian period, that sort of thing.

I'm surprised how sad this news made me.  I never met her, but my family has many times.  From just after her coronation to helping her lost luggage get to where it was going before her so it was waiting when she arrived and she made a lovely comment about it to the crew.  She was as sharp as a tack and witty.  

She will be missed.

But I'm glad Charles has a strong record of working with social and environmental causes long before they became fashionable.  His stance on wool is one I can get behind.  We could ask for a lot worse.

r ranson wrote:
But I'm glad Charles has a strong record of working with social and environmental causes long before they became fashionable.  His stance on wool is one I can get behind.  We could ask for a lot worse.

Yes I agree Charles has some strong Permie leanings: as well as favouring organic products, he also is know to wear repurposed and mended clothes (see his left lower pocket).



source

Oh, I never saw his patched blazer before.  Love it!

The words that come to mind about Queen Elizabeth are grace, determination, courage, and strength. Not many leaders in this world have personally gone into the fray, for their countries - and the woman who does it is rare, indeed. I think she's one of the most polished, interesting, and multifaceted of all the current world leaders, and she will be missed, but has most definitely left her mark, and in all the best ways. God rest her soul, the Queen is dead. Long live the King.

I once read a book by an American paratrooper stationed in England.  He wrote of the time he went to the motor pool to pick up a Jeep that was getting an oil change.  He kicked the soles of the boots sticking out from under it and made a less than polite comment about the slowness of the work. Of course when the solider working in the Jeep stuck her head out to apologize, it turned out to be A teenaged Elizabeth.  I followed up on this tale enough to verify that she had spent time in a motor pool.

I was thinking of a way to show my feelings.  Wearing black doesn't say much anymore because people here wear black all the time.  

A black arm band was traditional when my family lived in England, but I don't have one and I haven't time to sew one.

However, a simple black ribbon and a safety pin is also a way to show mourning.  Apparently, the official time is 12 days, but I don't know when that starts or ends.  

r ranson wrote: Apparently, the official time is 12 days, but I don't know when that starts or ends.  

I believe I heard that the funeral will be on the 19th of Sept, but I don't know if that helps determine the 12 days.

My understanding is that Charles has requested an additional 7 days of official mourning after the funeral for the UK.



I like the idea of a mourning ribbon to show respect.

The day of the funeral is going to be a bank holiday and I am considering keeping the shop closed on that day.  We don't normally close for bank holidays (except Xmas and New Year) but I'm leaning in that direction at the moment. I'll see how the staff feel tomorrow.