The death of Queen Elizabeth II ends the reign of Britain’s longest-serving monarch. At the age of 25, she succeeded her father, King George VI, after his death in 1952. LSU History Professor Meredith Veldman said even though the royal family no longer governs the United Kingdom…
“She does have enormous symbolic power, and I don’t think either Charles or even William will have that amount of symbolic weight,” said Veldman.
Queen Elizabeth’s reign of 70 years bore witness to numerous historic events, but Veldman believes the Queen will be most remembered for her sense of obligation and her auxiliary service during WWII.
“She’s just the embodiment of that value that seems so WWII generation. Putting aside your own desires for a sense of duty,” said Veldman.
And while the Queen also weathered several royal scandals, for example, the fallout from Princess Diana’s death, Veldman said ironically there’s more fascination with the royal family across the pond.
“Crazily in many ways, the Royal Family is probably more popular in the United States than it is in Britain,” said Veldman.
Queen Elizabeth II died Thursday at Balmoral Castle in Scotland at the age of 96.
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