Queen Elizabeth II was one of the most famous people in the world, often seen but not always heard.
Here are some of her most memorable quotes:
– ‘Salad Days’ –
– Which the then-Princess Elizabeth reportedly asked her nanny when she was told her family would be moving to Buckingham Palace after her father became king in 1936.
“I declare before you all that my whole life, long or short, will be devoted to your service.”
— Dedicated to a life of service in the Commonwealth at the age of 21 on a radio show from Cape Town.
“All my life and with all my heart I will strive to be worthy of your trust.”
— The new Queen Elizabeth II speaks on a radio broadcast at her coronation in 1953.
“When I was 21, I gave my life to serve our people and asked for God’s help to fulfill that vow. Although that vow was taken in my salad days when I was green in judgment, I have no regrets and will retract a word of it.”
— Reaffirmed her lifelong commitment to the job in a 25th anniversary speech in 1977.
“The time of words has now passed to the time of action.”
— Calling on world leaders to leave a legacy for future generations at the United Nations Climate Summit in 2021.
– Royal Intrusion –
“What are you doing here?”
— The Queen’s reported reaction to finding Michael Fagan in her bedroom on July 9, 1982, according to the intruder himself.
“I remember we were afraid of being recognized.”
— She recalled in a 1985 BBC interview how she, her younger sister Margaret and a group of friends celebrated the end of World War II with crowds on the streets of central London.
– troubled times –
“1992 is not a year I look back on with unalloyed glee. In the words of one of my more sympathetic correspondents, it has proved to be an ‘annus horribilis’.”
— From the Queen’s Christmas message the year the marriages of three of her children collapsed and there was a major fire at Windsor Castle.
“No one who knew Diana will ever forget her. She will be remembered by millions of others who never met her but felt they knew her. For my part, I believe there are lessons to be learned from her life and from the extraordinary, moving response to her death.”
– Faced with public criticism for her slow response, the Queen addresses the public in a highly unusual live TV show following the death of Princess Diana in a car crash in Paris in 1997.
“Nothing that can be said can ease the anguish and pain of these moments. Grief is the price we pay for love.”
– From a message from the Queen read at a service in New York following the September 11, 2001 attacks.
“We should take comfort that while we may have more to endure, better days will come. We will be back with our friends. We will be back with our families. We’ll meet again.”
– Ralling the nation in a rare televised address at the height of Britain’s coronavirus lockdown in April 2020.
– Long life and devotion –
“He’s someone who doesn’t give compliments easily, but quite simply he has been my forte and has remained all these years, and I owe him a greater debt than he would ever say, or we will ever know.”
– The Queen on her husband, Prince Philip, in a speech in 1997 on their golden wedding anniversary.
“Gratitude, respect and pride, these words sum up how I feel for the people of this country and the Commonwealth – and what this golden jubilee means to me.”
— Celebrating his 50th anniversary as monarch in 2002.
“It’s not one I’ve ever aspired to. Long life can inevitably pass by many milestones, my own being no exception.”
— When he became Britain’s longest reigning monarch on September 9, 2015.
“None of us will live forever.”
– The Queen acknowledges mortality and calls on world leaders to stop global warming in a speech ahead of the UN climate summit in October 2021.
– quick-wittedness –
“Less elegant? What do you think that is?”
— Her reaction to Annie Leibovitz at a 2007 photoshoot when the celebrity photographer suggested she take off her tiara.
– Her response to Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland Martin McGuinness asking how she was meeting them in 2016. McGuinness was a former senior figure in the Irish Republican Army who killed her cousin Louis Mountbatten in 1979.
“Are you supposed to look like you’re having fun?”
– Jokes with G7 leaders in Cornwall, South West England, 2021.
– cameo roles –
— The Queen greets Daniel Craig, who plays James Bond in a parody skit for the London 2012 Olympics opening ceremony.
— Responding to a light-hearted challenge from the Obamas at the launch of Grandson Prince Harry’s 2016 Invictus Games for wounded, disabled and ill military members and veterans.
— Pulling a jam sandwich out of her purse over tea with Paddington Bear during their 2022 Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
