Whether it was due to age, ill health or a sense that the end was near, Queen Elizabeth II spent much of the last two years tying up loose ends, trying to make sure the family firm would keep ticking along after her death.
The transition began slowly, with the queen turning over more public duties to her son and heir, now King Charles III, as she entered her twilight years. But it moved into overdrive in 2022 as Elizabeth celebrated 70 years on the throne. First she expressed her wish that Charles' wife, Camilla, be known as queen consort after her death, and then the future king took center stage during four days of Platinum Jubilee festivities.
The queen became head of the Commonwealth, a grouping of 54 independent countries with links to the former British Empire, when she ascended the throne and championed its role in world affairs throughout her reign. But what had been a subtle shift became more obvious after the coronavirus pandemic led Elizabeth to take refuge at Windsor Castle outside London and the death of her husband, Prince Philip, reminded the nation of the queen's mortality.
Camilla has been a divisive figure in Britain because her long-term relationship with Charles was blamed for the breakdown of his first marriage to the widely beloved Princess Diana. The mother of Princes William and Harry died in a Paris car crash in 1997, five years after her messy split with Charles.
Late last year, Elizabeth was seen using a walking stick for the first time, and in April she revealed that a bout with COVID-19 had left her feeling "very tired and exhausted." When it came time for the Platinum Jubilee, the palace let it be known that the queen's ongoing "mobility issues" would limit her role.He donned full military uniform to review the troops during the queen's ceremonial birthday parade, sat in the position of honor at the front of St. Paul's Cathedral for a service celebrating her reign and led salutes to his mother at a gala concert, appearing with Camilla by his side.
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