weissmann who will join us in a few minutes, but we begin with the news that has made today one of those days that we will simply never forget around here. a global outpouring of grief after queen elizabeth ii passed away earlier today at the age of 96. the queen, who has reigned over the united kingdom and 15 other countries all over the world for 70 years die at balmoral castle, that s her summer home in scotland. all four of the queen s children were by her side in her final moments. these pictures show princes andrew and edward along with her grandson arriving at balmoral earlier today. her son charles is now the king taking the throne as king charles iii. he calls the death of his mother, a moment of the greatest sadness for me and all members of my family, adding this, quote, during this period of mourning and change my family and i will be comforted and sustained by our knowledge of the respect ask deep affection in which the queen was so widely held. it is difficult t
built. our country has grown and flourished under her reign. britain is the great country it is today because of her. reporter: crowds gathering in the uk, many with flowers in hand. very emotional, so i wanted to pay some respects to the queen. i was called sally elizabeth because i was born in the year of the coronation. so she s been the only queen i ve ever known and i can t believe it s happened so quickly. reporter: as the world paused, in honor of a life dedicated to service. moments of silence at the new york stock exchange. at the u.n. security council. u.s. flags ordered to half staff until the queen is laid to rest. president biden and the first lady among the many world leaders reflecting on her steadying presence, but also remembering how she charmed us with her wit, moved us with her kindness and generously shared with us her wisdom.
as the recognisable feature of your institutional stability. stephanie, do you think her long reign, stability, as thomas says, continuity, has underpinned british democracy over all those decades? yes, i think it has. she is a constant. she has remained - steadfastly impartial. she is a steadying presence through times of crisis, - and i think she has definitely provided that continuity and, if you look at it, in two years time, she will be the longest| serving monarch in history. she will surpass louis xiv. that is an incredible achievement and i think, without her, - i i think the country is facing real. challenges for the sad day, when it comes, when she passes away, because i think there will be .
you that, amazingly, despite all the change, she presides over a certain charisma, almost, that attaches itself to royalty and to britain. the monarchy itself does not explain what political power is in the world. it s a different thing. but i agree with you that the charisma of the monarchy is the abiding feature of how you recognise great britain in those 70 years. no scandal, no transformation has been able to topple the british attachment to monarchy as the recognisable feature of your institutional stability. stephanie, do you think her long reign, stability, as thomas says, continuity, has underpinned british democracy over all those decades? i think it yes, has. she is a constant. she has remained - steadfastly impartial. she is a steadying presence
well, let s talk about that stability with stephanie. do you think her long reign, stability, as thomas says continuity, really has underpinned british democracy over all those decades? yes, i think it has. i mean, she is a constant. she has remained - steadfastly impartial. she is a steadying presence through times of crisis, - and i think she has definitely provided that continuity and, if you look at it, she is - in two years time, she will be the longest servingj monarch in history. she will surpass louis xiv. and that isjust an incredible achievement and i think - without her, i think- the country is facing real challenges for when she l the sad day, when it comes, when she does pass i