Most of the world has had its eyes on the United Kingdom this week as we mourn the loss of a standard in the English monarchy. Queen Elizabeth II died after ruling on the throne for 70 years.
For most, the pomp and circumstance are unknown to us but we are engaged by them.
In America, our forefathers laid down their lives to unshackle us from the Crown and the tyranny that came with it. But since then, a relationship has been formed, more than that, a deep friendship has been forged that has been maintained even in the darkest days.
Queen Elizabeth has built on that friendship during her long reign as Queen.
In fact, on September 14, 2001, just days after the terrorist attack in America, the Queen was at the helm when the Star Spangled Banner was sung at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. The Queen was willing to go against hundreds of years of tradition and protocol to secure this deeply meaningful gesture of real friendship and solidarity.
Take a look at these video’s of our Anthem played at both Buckingham Palace and St. Paul’s Cathedral:
Queen Elizabeth was in attendance at St. Paul's Cathedral London on September 14, 2001, when the Star Spangled Banner was sung during a memorial service for the victims of the 9-11 terrorist attacks on World Trade Center in NYC and Pentagon in WDC pic.twitter.com/AENtYd6kpK
— Howard Mortman (@HowardMortman) September 8, 2022
Before former Prime Minister Boris Johnson left his office, he offered an eloquent and glowing tribute to the Queen in the House of Commons.
Johnson said that in the hearts of all Britons “there is an ache at the passing of our queen, a deep and personal sense of loss — far more intense, perhaps, than we expected.”
“She seemed so timeless and so wonderful that I am afraid we had come to believe, like children, that she would just go on and on,” Johnson said.
And he added: “As is so natural with human beings, it is only when we face the reality of our loss that we truly understand what has gone. It is only really now that we grasp how much she meant for us, how much she did for us, how much she loved us.”
Watch Boris Johnson:
