The Dutch King, Queen, and Prime Minister respond to the death of Queen Elizabeth

The UK’s Queen Elizabeth II passed away on September 8, 2022. The Dutch Royal Family gave their condolences to her family and the British Nation. 

Queen Elizabeth II was put under medical supervision due to health concerns during the afternoon of September 8. Her family rushed to be by her side at Balmoral Castle, where she stayed during the summer months. She also recently received new British Prime Minister Liz Truss on September 6. 

Her death was announced at 6.30 PM GMT. 

Longest reigning monarch in Britain

After celebrating 70 years on the throne, Queen Elizabeth was the longest-reigning monarch in Britain’s history. In light of her passing, the Dutch Royal Family reflect on her life and offer condolences to her family members. 

“We commemorate Queen Elizabeth II with deep respect and great affection,” says King Willem-Alexander, Queen Máxima, and Princess Beatrix, the NU reports.

“Tough and wise, she put her long life at the service of the British people. We feel strongly connected to the United Kingdom and the Royal Family and share in their grief.”

Queen-Elizabethh-II-with-Prince-Philip-Rotterdam
Queen Elizabeth visits Rotterdam. Image: Public Domain/Wikimedia Commons

Her family grieves

King Charles, formally Prince Charles, also shared his grief. As the son of Queen Elizabeth, not only is he losing a monarch core to the history of Britain, he is losing his mother. “This is one of the saddest moments that I and my family have experienced. We mourn our beloved queen and mother,” he says in a post on Twitter

Across the world, people from all nations have expressed sadness over the Queen’s death. Even here in the Netherlands, people have offered well-wishes to the people of the British nation.

Leaders of State reflect

Prime Minister Mark Rutte reflected on the Queen and her demeanour. He says, “However high the waves of history may have been, Queen Elizabeth combined a sense of duty and steadfastness with lightness and humour. She impressed everyone who met her with the characterful interpretation of her difficult task.”

The newly-appointed British Prime Minister, Liz Truss, also reflected on the queen’s death. “We have all been upended by the death of Queen Elizabeth. Our country has grown and blossomed under her. She was the rock on which the modern United Kingdom was built,” says Truss in a televised speech on Thursday evening. 

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Heather Slevin
Heather Slevin
Heather is a Dublin native, addicted to catching the Luas, the Irish version of a tram, for one stop, and well used to the constant rain and shine. Seeking to swap one concrete city for another (with a few more canals and a friendlier attitude to cyclists) here she is with the Dutch Review! As a Creative Writing student, she can usually be found sweating over the complicated formatting of her latest poem or deep inside the pages of a book, and loves writing, writing, writing.

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