Elizabeth II of England dies, at the age of 96 and after more than 70 years of reign

The new king will spend the night at Balmoral and travel on Friday to London

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II has died at the age of 96, ending an unprecedented reign of more than 70 years and marking the accession to the throne of her firstborn, 73-year-old Prince Charles, Buckingham Palace reports.

The Royal Household issued a terse statement to confirm that “the Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon.” “The king and queen consort will remain at Balmoral tonight and will return to London tomorrow,” it explained.

The state of health of the monarch had worsened in recent months, marked by mobility problems repeated absences at particularly symbolic events. This week, she received the new Prime Minister, Liz Truss, at the residence of Balmoral (Scotland), instead of at Buckingham Palace as was tradition.

Already on Wednesday she canceled her schedule and this Thursday the Royal House confirmed that her health condition had worsened. Her close relatives, including the heir, have traveled to Balmoral to accompany the queen in her last moments.

The queen came to the throne in February 1952, following the death of her father, George VI, who had assumed the crown by the abdication of his brother. In all this time, she had never shown any signs of following in the footsteps of other European monarchs and abdicating in favor of her son.

Elizabeth II was married for 73 years to Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who died in April 2021. The couple had four children, eight grandchildren and twelve great-grandchildren.