On September 8, the coded message was delivered—“London Bridge is down.” That was the signal communicating the death of Queen Elizabeth II. The monarch of the United Kingdom and 14 other Commonwealth realms was 96 years old.
Here are nine things you should know about the world’s most recognized woman.
1. Elizabeth became queen because of a divorced American.
Months after becoming king in 1936, Edward VIII proposed marriage to Wallis Simpson, an American who had divorced her first husband and was seeking a divorce from her second. The marriage would have conflicted with Edward’s status as symbolic head of the Church of England, which at the time disapproved of remarriage after divorce if a former spouse was still alive. Edward chose Simpson over the throne and gave the crown to his brother, George VI. When George VI died in 1952, he was succeeded by his elder daughter, Elizabeth II.
2. Elizabeth was married to her teenage sweetheart for more than seven decades.
Elizabeth first met her future husband (and third cousin), Philip, when they were children. They met again when he was 18 and she was 13—and Elizabeth fell in love. They were secretly engaged in 1946 when Philip asked King George VI for his daughter’s hand in marriage. The king granted his request but delayed the formal engagement until Elizabeth’s 21st birthday the following April. Philip renounced his Greek and Danish titles and converted to Anglicanism from Greek Orthodox. They wed in 1947 and were married nearly 74 years before Philip’s death in 2021.
3. The coronation of Elizabeth included numerous Christian rites.
The three-hour coronation of Elizabeth included an extended communion service. As she entered the church, she was received with a reading of Psalm 122:1–3, 6, 7. She then made “her humble adoration,” and then kneeled on a footstool to make some short private prayers. The Archbishop of Canterbury presented her to the crowd and then asked her a series of questions, including “Will you to the utmost of your power maintain the Laws of God and the true profession of the Gospel?” Elizabeth then went to lay her right hand upon the “Holy Gospel in the great Bible” to swear her oath. After, she was presented with that Bible and the Archbishop said, “Our gracious Queen: to keep your Majesty ever mindful of the law and the Gospel of God as the Rule for the whole life and government of Christian Princes, we present you with this Book, the most valuable thing that this world affords.” The Moderator then added, “Here is Wisdom; This is the royal Law; These are the lively Oracles of God.” The service also included a reading from the Psalms, 1 Peter, and Matthew, as well as a recitation of the Apostles’ Creed. Elizabeth was then anointed with oil in the manner of 1 Kings 1:39–40, and the ceremony included several more prayers and confessions.
4. Elizabeth appears to have had a sincere personal faith in Jesus.
Elizabeth was a private person, so it’s not surprising she didn’t often talk about her faith publicly. But there are times, such as in the annual Queen’s Christmas Message, when the sincerity of her beliefs shone through. The Christmas message, which started as a radio broadcast before moving to television and then later to the internet, was frequently heard by millions of people across the globe. In the message given in 2000, Elizabeth said, “To many of us our beliefs are of fundamental importance. For me the teachings of Christ and my own personal accountability before God provide a framework in which I try to lead my life. I, like so many of you, have drawn great comfort in difficult times from Christ’s words and example.”
5. Elizabeth was the ‘Supreme Governor’ of the Church of England.
In her role as monarch, Elizabeth served as the titular head of the Church of England. As the prefix of the Thirty-nine Articles (added by the king in 1682) states, the monarch is by title the “Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church, within these our dominions.” Today, the position is mostly symbolic, though Elizabeth was tasked with appointing archbishops and bishops on the advice of the prime minister, who considers the names selected by a Church Commission. Archbishops, bishops and deans, and deacons and parish priests all swear an oath of allegiance and pay homage to the Sovereign.
6. She also swore an oath to preserve the Church of Scotland.
Although Elizabeth wasn’t the supreme governor of the Church of Scotland as she is in the Church of England, she swore an oath to “maintain and preserve the Protestant Religion and Presbyterian Church Government.” Her relationship with the Church of Scotland was symbolized by a service of dedication in St. Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh on June 24, 1953, three weeks after the coronation. The Church of Scotland is a Presbyterian church and recognizes only Jesus Christ as “King and Head of the Church.”
7. She was one of modern history’s most charitable monarchs—and motivated to serve by Jesus.
Elizabeth was a patron for more than 800 different charities. She was considered one of the most charitable monarchs in modern history, raising nearly $2 billion dollars for the organizations she supported. “We sometimes think the world’s problems are so big that we can do little to help,” she said in 2016. “On our own, we cannot end wars or wipe out injustice, but the cumulative impact of thousands of small acts of goodness can be bigger than we imagine. . . . Christ’s example helps me see the value of doing small things with great love, whoever does them and whatever they themselves believe.”
8. Elizabeth only carried cash on Sundays so she could put money in the offering plate.
Elizabeth acquired over $500 million in private wealth during her life. But the only time she carried any currency was on Sundays. She would include some cash in her purse on Sunday so she could make an offering to the church. Her typical contribution was £5 ($5.75), but sometimes she’d give £10 ($11.50). According to Erica Gonzales, “She also makes sure not to draw attention to her offering, and reportedly has a butler iron the bills into a square so she can discreetly add her donation to the collection.”
9. She was one of the longest-serving heads of state in recorded history.
Elizabeth was not only the longest-lived and longest-reigning monarch in British history, but she was also the oldest and longest-serving head of state—and the second-longest verifiable reigning sovereign monarch in world history, second only to France’s Louis XIV (who served for 72 years and 110 days). At the time of her death, Elizabeth had been queen for 25,782 days.
The Gospel Coalition