longest-reigning monarch<\/a> and a rock of stability across much of a turbulent century, died Thursday after 70 years on the throne. She was 96.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe palace announced she died at Balmoral Castle, her summer residence in Scotland, where members of the royal family had rushed to her side after her health took a turn for the worse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A link to the almost-vanished generation that fought World War II<\/a>, she was the only monarch most Britons have ever known, and her name defines an age: the modern Elizabethan Era.<\/p>\n\n\n\nDuring a trip to London in the mid ’90s, Sgt. Maj. Myles Overton and members of The Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps got to meet Queen Elizabeth II, a highlight in the percussionist’s military career. (Department of Defense)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li>The US Army Chorus sings for US President George W. Bush, Queen Elizabeth II and invited guests in the East Room after a State Dinner at the White House in Washington, DC, May 7, 2007. (SAUL LOEB\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li>Queen Elizabeth II and U.S. President George W. Bush watch the U.S. Army’s Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps march on the South Lawn of the White House May 7, 2007 in Washington, DC. (Chip Somodevilla\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li>The 1st Cavalry Division Band performs during the Platinum Jubilee celebration for the Queen of England, Elizabeth II, at Fort Hood, Texas, Jun. 4, 2022, with a cardboard cutout of the queen. The event brought together American and British service members, along with community leaders, to honor the great partnership between their respective militaries. (Spc. Richard Barnes\/Army)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li>Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II visited the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth in Portsmouth May 22, 2021, just hours before the United Kingdom (UK) Carrier Strike Group 21 sailed for its first operational deployment. US Marines and sailors from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 211 and USS The Sullivans served alongside UK colleagues during CSG-21. During the 45 minute visit, Her Majesty spoke to a selection of British and American Marines, airmen and sailors. (Jay Allen\/Royal Navy)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li>Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II visited the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth in Portsmouth May 22, 2021, just hours before the United Kingdom (UK) Carrier Strike Group 21 sailed for its first operational deployment. US Marines and sailors from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 211 and USS The Sullivans served alongside UK colleagues during CSG-21. During the 45 minute visit, Her Majesty spoke to a selection of British and American Marines, airmen and sailors. (Jay Allen\/Royal Navy)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li>FILE – Britain’s Princess Elizabeth, a Junior Commander in the Auxiliary Territorial Service, receives a clock presented to her by her old associates at the camp where she received her early training, during a ceremony at the No. 1 M.T. Training Center, in Camberley, England, Aug. 3, 1945. (AP, File)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li>FILE – In this file photo dated June 5, 1961, Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, center, walks with US President John F. Kennedy, right, and his wife Jacqueline Kennedy, as they enter an ante-room in Buckingham Palace, London, before a dinner given by the Queen in honor of the visiting President and his wife. (AP, File)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/a> <\/a> <\/a>
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