Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom passed away at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on Sep. 8, 2022.

 Her life had been filled with numerous significant events, such as World War II, where she served as a mechanic and truck driver while still a Princess, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the first female British prime minister, and the 9/11 attacks on the United States. Her reign had also been marked by four different Jubilee celebrations, the most for any British monarch. Her platinum jubilee, celebrated this past June, marked 70 years on the throne. 

Born as the daughter of a second-born son, she was considered a minor royal and was never truly expected to have a significant role in the royal family. Until her uncle, King Edward VIII, abdicated, which laid the path for her to take the crown.

Queen Elizabeth has been an important cultural figure for the past 80 years, and with her reign being the only one known by the past three generations, people waited almost 30 hours to pay their respects to the beloved Queen at Westminster Hall.

With her passing, Queen Elizabeth had left a vacancy on the throne, which her oldest son Charles, formerly Prince of Wales, will be assuming as King Charles III. His wife Camilla became Queen Consort, not Princess Consort as originally announced after their controversial 2005 wedding. Prince William and his wife, Catherine, formerly Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, have now been bestowed the title of Prince and Princess of Wales by the King, the traditional title held by the heir apparent. It is not expected for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s titles to change anytime soon, as there is no official title for second-born sons of the Monarch. Although Duke of York, currently held by the queen’s second son Prince Andrew, is customary. The titles of Queen Elizabeth’s other three children are also not expected to change, except Prince Edward, who is projected to take on the title of his father, Duke of Edinburgh.

The funeral for the queen was held on Monday, Sep.19, at Westminster Abbey after four days of lying in state at Westminster hall. Over 500 world leaders, including presidents, monarchs, and representatives from all 56 of the commonwealth nations, were in attendance to honor the life and death of Her Majesty The Queen.