Sixty-five years ago today, Great Britain’s King George VI died at the age of 56. The King is dead, long live the Queen.
George VI’s daughter became Queen Elizabeth II. My mother clipped and saved newspaper articles about those events. These are just a few from her scrapbooks.
From George VI to Elizabeth II
In Canada, as in the UK and throughout the Commonwealth, changes had to be made. From stamps to road signs to horse races, thought had to be given to what would be renamed and what would remain the same.
Tillsonburg ON tribute service
And there were tributes to the late King. The photo below is of one at the high school in Tillsonburg, Ontario. My grandparents, Charley and Minnie Burwell, are there. He is the white haired man in the bottom left corner and grandma is standing beside him.
Three Queens…
When George VI died, Elizabeth became the reigning monarch. But she was one of three women in England called Queen. The others were Queen Elizabeth, widow of King George VI, and Queen Mary, his mother and widow of George V.
… and a King
Present also was a king of Great Britain, one who abdicated. The Duke of Windsor, formerly Edward VIII, attended the funeral of his brother and successor. (See The King and Us Feb 16, 2011)
What didn’t happen
George VI had made plans for a “health cruise” to South Africa. His daughter Elizabeth was to represent him on a planned tour to Australia and New Zealand. While they were gone, his younger brother Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester would take care of royal matters at home. But none of it happened, due to the King’s death.
Another might-have-been in the Duke’s family was a Royal wedding. His niece, Princess Margaret, and his wife’s nephew, the Earl of Dalkeith, were an item for a time. But it didn’t happen.
An Elizabethan Era
