British royalty who was queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions from her husband’s accession in 1936 until his death in 1952, after which she was known as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. She was a beloved symbol of courage and dignity during a tumultuous century of war, always seen as modest and stable.
Born into a family of British nobility, she came to prominence in 1923 when she married Prince George, the Duke of York, at Westminster Abbey on 26 April 1923, who ascended the throne in 1936 after his brother, Edward VIII, abdicated. The mother of Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret, she was known affectionately as “Queen Mum” when her elder daughter took the throne.
A sturdy daughter of the Scottish aristocracy, the ninth of ten children born to the 14th Earl and Countess of Strathmore, she was descended from King Henry VII on her mother’s side and from King Robert II of Scotland on her father’s side.
She was a morale-builder during World War II. During the worst of the blitz she went around the country visiting hospitals and bombed-out neighborhoods, usually wearing her lively colors, flamboyant hats and three rows of pearls. She refused to go to Canada for a safe retreat.
On 13 September, three bombs hit Buckingham Palace, 30 ft. from her and George; on their next visit to the East End they were loudly cheered.
She was widowed on 6 February 1952 with the death of King George V.
As a tiny octogenarian she was still a gracious and beloved figure at public functions, a reminder of the unity and greatness of the monarchy in an era when the office was often greeted with cynicism. Elizabeth has been criticized for extravagance – her bank overdraft totaled some $6 million, but her daughter has made no move to put her on a budget.
Hip replacements in 1995 and 1998 slowed the Queen Mother’s step but she still carried out more than 50 royal engagements annually, performing her duties at royal functions and carrying on to dinners and balls. After a fall at her residence she suffered a broken collarbone on 3 November 2000. She mended well and had to cancel her appointments only briefly.
When she reached 100, a grandmother of nine, though frail she was still quick and avid for days at the races, picnics in Scotland and gin-and-Dubonnet cocktails. A niece remarked, “Her secret is her joy in life.”
The unhappiness and scandals of the royals during the last decade and more had hit the family hard but the queen mother had helped to shore up the throne with her usual quiet demeanor and public graciousness.
On 9 February 2002 her youngest daughter, Princess Margaret, died of a stroke.
Elizabeth died in her sleep on 30 March 2002, aged 101, at the Royal Lodge, Windsor Great Park, with her surviving daughter, Queen Elizabeth II, at her bedside.
Link to Wikipedia biography