King Charles has paid tribute to his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, on what would have been her 100th birthday, saying she would have been deeply troubled by current affairs but believed 'goodness will always prevail'. In a video message released on Tuesday, the monarch honoured the nation's longest-reigning monarch, describing her as 'constant, steadfast and wholly devoted to the people she served'.
The late queen would have turned 100 on 21 April, and the king said the day should be a celebration of a 'life well-lived' rather than marking an 'absence'. He added: 'Much about the times we now live in, I suspect, may have troubled her deeply, but I take heart from her belief that goodness will always prevail and that a brighter dawn is never far from the horizon.'
The king did not specify the troubles, but the message comes amid global economic uncertainty, the war in Ukraine, and recent controversy surrounding his brother, Prince Andrew, who was stripped of his titles over his association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Elizabeth II died peacefully at Balmoral on 8 September 2022 at the age of 96, after a 70-year reign.
In the video, filmed in the library at Balmoral Castle in early April, the king recalled her 'marvellous twinkle of the eye when sharing a marmalade sandwich with Paddington Bear in the final months of her life'. He also quoted her first public broadcast at age 14, where she said we can each play our part 'to make the world of tomorrow a better and happier place'.
Royal events on Tuesday include a Buckingham Palace reception with charities associated with the late queen, such as Cancer Research UK and the Jockey Club, and a visit by members of the monarchy to the British Museum to see a scale model of the Queen Elizabeth Memorial, designed by architect Norman Foster.
