May Her Majesty rest in peace

Today, Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom and head of state of 18 other countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand and a number of island nations in the Caribbean Sea and South Pacific, has passed away aged 96.

Her reign, which began in 1952, was the longest of any British monarch and the second longest of any monarch in world history.

It is fitting that her last official duty was to invite Liz Truss to form a new government: Ms Truss, Elizabeth II's 15th Prime Minister, was born in 1975; Her Majesty's first Prime Minster, Winston Churchill, was born 101 years earlier in 1874. In this very tangible sense, the Queen represented the continuation of Great Britain as a nation, stretching across more than a thousand years of history, culture and glory.

Her stoic, steadfast and good humoured devotion to that nation and idea will be missed.

Elizabeth II's passing at a time of societal breakdown, economic hardship, political turmoil and war will almost certainly be cause for deep reflection within Britain.

She is survived by four children, eight grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren.

May Her Majesty rest in peace, and may our nation unite in this time of mourning.