Queen of Hearts

1954: Winston Churchill, Charles, Anne (WSJ)

The world spins on, but days after her death Queen Elizabeth II still commands space on front pages and magazine covers and lead minutes on broadcasts.

And deservedly so.

She has been in the public eye since the day she was born, her life spanned nearly a century, and she conducted herself throughout with dignity and refinement. Her first Prime Minister was Winston Churchill, and her 15th was Liz Truss, whom the Queen appointed two days before she died.

Hers was a life of pomp, circumstance, and privilege, yet few would view that as acceptable payment if it meant perpetual responsibility and never-ending scrutiny.

It's difficult to put into words what she meant not only to Britons but her admirers around the world. From an American-British citizen:

2022: Liz Truss (WSJ)

Queen Elizabeth’s great gift was her ability to maintain that affection over so many decades, many of them very difficult for her country. She did this by being constantly present in the nation’s life without ever seeming overbearing, and by taking care to stay out of politics.

This allowed her to ask for, and receive, the love of her people without demanding of them the impossible—toleration for a suffocating presence or assent to political positions they might not share.

Peggy Noonan:

She wanted to be a queen the country adhered to and was proud of, so she maintained dignity. She knew her role. She didn’t show moods or take sides, never tried to win the crowd, didn’t attempt to establish a reputation for wit or good nature. She was in her public dealings placid, as a great nation’s queen would be.

...The great of Britain have been talking for years about how sad it will be when she departs. They’re about to be taken aback by how deep and pervasive the mourning is.

I shall not look upon [her] like again.---Hamlet, Act 1, Scene 2