House of Lords
Wednesday, 3rd April 2002.
The House met at half-past eleven of the clock, pursuant to Standing Order 16: The LORD CHANCELLOR on the Woolsack.
Prayers—Read by the Lord Bishop of St. Edmundsbury and Ipswich.
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother
The Lord Privy Seal (Lord Williams of Mostyn) rose to move, That an humble Address be presented to Her Majesty as follows:
"Most Gracious Sovereign—We, Your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament assembled, beg leave to express our heartfelt sympathy in the great sorrow which Your Majesty has suffered by the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother; and to offer to Your Majesty our most sincere condolences.
"This year marks Your Majesty's Golden Jubilee but also the fiftieth anniversary of the death of His late Majesty King George VI, to whom Queen Elizabeth was a devoted Consort. Their Majesties' courage during the second world war inspired and strengthened the nation in a manner which will be remembered always by Your subjects at home and overseas. Queen Elizabeth's charm, dignity and steadfast service during His late Majesty's reign and throughout fifty years of widowhood won Her the boundless admiration of this House, as of all Your subjects. We were proud to celebrate Her late Majesty's centenary and to see Queen Elizabeth undertake and enjoy public duties even in Her 102nd year. Only seven weeks ago we saw again the courage typical of Her Majesty, on the sorrowful occasion of the death of Her Royal Highness The Princess Margaret; but we rejoice that Her Majesty was able to witness the fiftieth anniversary of Your Accession as our Queen.
"We assure Your Majesty that, mindful of the great love which Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother inspired in us all, we shall ever hold dear Her memory. Our prayers for Queen Elizabeth, and for You and for Your Majesty's family, are joined with those of the entire nation"
The noble and learned Lord said: My Lords, this is an occasion for sadness and mourning, but I believe that it is also an occasion for full-hearted and grateful commemoration of a long life well lived in the service of this nation. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother brought smiles wherever she went. We remember the delight and happiness and, I think I may say, mischief, which seemed to accompany her everywhere.
It is not long since we gathered together on another occasion to mark with great gladness and joy the Queen Mother's 100th birthday. The warmth, affection and regard in which she was held was plainly apparent to all that day, and in the days that followed as the nation celebrated.
On another more recent occasion we gathered here to send our heartfelt sympathy to her on the loss, so hard for any parent to bear, of her younger daughter, Her Royal Highness Princess Margaret.
In many ways for many of our people, the life of the Queen Mother seems from a very distant past, but there are resonances which echo still, and ought to do so. She was born in the year of the death of the great Queen. When she was still a young child of 14, at about this time of the year, the armies of unreason were massing. Young men, including her own brother, were ready to sacrifice themselves to bring down what they saw as tyranny. Then the old world shook and was fractured beyond all hope of repair. She was still a young woman of 17 when the Russian Revolution erupted.
When His Majesty King George VI came to the throne, the monarchy was an institution which had been shaken and also tested by the abdication of 1936. Their Majesties re-established the monarchy firmly in the loyalty and affections of the people. When crowned, Queen Elizabeth was crowned Empress of India. After the death of His late Majesty in 1952, the Queen Mother continued a full round of public duties long after she could have chosen an honourable retirement. She spent half her long life in widowhood.
Some of your Lordships will remember how Queen Elizabeth, with her husband, was an inspiration during the darkest days of the war by staying in London to face, with her family, the perils of the Blitz. Her courage at that time served as a beacon of encouragement which will for ever shine in the memory.
Her life of public service spanned the generations in a remarkable way. She embraced that life with grace and commitment. She was no less enthusiastic in her support for the Commonwealth and we know that the entire Commonwealth joins with us today. And yet though her life of service began so long ago, her presence and influence has continued to be felt in more recent times. She brought to all she did unique personal qualities. Her courage I have already mentioned. It was reinforced by boundless charm; perceptiveness enlivened with a bright and sparkling wit; and sympathetic consideration of the needs and feelings of others.
Above all, the Queen Mother retained a genuinely unaffected interest in the lives of her fellow countrymen. Her life was characterised by her charitable work and her support of the Armed Forces. She was involved with over 300 charities. She was Colonel-in-Chief of no fewer than 13 regular regiments, eight of them in the British Army and five in the forces of Commonwealth countries. All will escort the coffin to Westminster Hall on Friday. Through this absolute commitment to public duty, she enriched the life of this nation.
Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother brought to her private life the same energy, charm, determination and steadfast strength. She had a great gift for family life. Her interests were many. She delighted in music and was a keen patron of the visual arts. Her love of National Hunt racing was matched only by her keen knowledge of the subject and the relevant odds. Her personal qualities were deeply rooted in her firm faith and love of God.
It is difficult to imagine this country without the Queen Mother. Born at the beginning of a difficult century, her experience and wisdom linked the decades. She won and retained the admiration and love of those in her own generation, but was equally an inspiration to those younger than herself. We all mourn her passing, as Duchess, Queen and Queen Mother.
To live to a great age brings respect almost automatically, but to inspire, maintain and sustain a loving and affectionate regard from so many is much more difficult. That was her very great achievement.
We have lost the Queen Mother. We need to remind ourselves that Her Majesty the Queen has lost the counsel of a Queen and a mother. It is in that spirit that we offer our truest sympathy to Her Majesty the Queen and to all members of the Royal Family. I beg to move.
Moved, That an humble Address be presented to Her Majesty as follows:
"Most Gracious Sovereign—We, Your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament assembled, beg leave to express our heartfelt sympathy in the great sorrow which Your Majesty has suffered by the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother; and to offer to Your Majesty our most sincere condolences.
"This year marks Your Majesty's Golden Jubilee but also the fiftieth anniversary of the death of His late Majesty King George VI, to whom Queen Elizabeth was a devoted Consort. Their Majesties' courage during the second world war inspired and strengthened the nation in a manner which will be remembered always by Your subjects at home and overseas. Queen Elizabeth's charm, dignity and steadfast service during His late Majesty's reign and throughout fifty years of widowhood won Her the boundless admiration of this House, as of all Your subjects. We were proud to celebrate Her late Majesty's centenary and to see Queen Elizabeth undertake and enjoy public duties even in Her 102nd year. Only seven weeks ago we saw again the courage typical of Her Majesty, on the sorrowful occasion of the death of Her Royal Highness The Princess Margaret; but we rejoice that Her Majesty was able to witness the fiftieth anniversary of Your Accession as our Queen.
"We assure Your Majesty that, mindful of the great love which Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother inspired in us all, we shall ever hold dear Her memory. Our prayers for Queen Elizabeth, and for
You and for Your Majesty's family, are joined with those of the entire nation"—(Lord Williams of Mostyn.)11.45 a.m.
Lord Strathclyde: My Lords, on this occasion, I know that I speak for the whole House when I rise to support the Motion moved by the noble and learned Lord the Leader of the House.
It is indeed a sad and sombre moment when this House is recalled to send such an humble Address to Her Majesty the Queen on the death of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother. It is even sadder that it should come so soon after the death of Princess Margaret and in the same year as the celebration of Her Majesty's Golden Jubilee year. To Her Majesty the Queen and all members of the Royal Family go our sympathy and prayers.
I do not believe that I am the only one to have been moved by the many tributes that have been paid these last few days: by those who knew her so well; by those representatives of so many organisations, whose interests she cared about and nurtured so much, as the noble and learned Lord mentioned—especially those followers of the turf, a subject on which the Queen Mother was no mean expert; by members of the public, who wanted to express a sense of loss and an appreciation of a life that seemed so much to be part of our country's fixtures and fittings; and, most memorably of all, by her grandson, His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, who reflected the mood of the nation when he said, "She was an institution in her own right".
Her life personified all those who understood the true meaning of duty, service and sacrifice. No generation alive in Britain and the Commonwealth today will be unaffected by her death. Her life spanned a century of enormous change in the world and, more particularly, here in the United Kingdom. It is extraordinary to think that she was the last Empress of India and that her life witnessed the rise and fall of Communism, two terrible world wars, the growth of technology and communication and huge social changes that left no family unaffected. Yet, across all those years, she herself never changed. She remained a pillar of stability and good humour and was a joy to all those millions whose lives she touched and graced with her sparkle and charm.
Nearly two years ago, I formed part of a small group from this House that presented the Queen Mother with an humble Address on the occasion of her 100th birthday. The impression that she left was one of enormous vitality—a joie de vivre—and when we made to go, not wishing to impinge too much on her time or to weary her, she insisted that more drinks be brought and that we should tell her more about politics and in particular your Lordships' House, a place that she held in great affection.
In her long life she knew testing times, but she never wavered. She shared without hesitation the grief and the danger of the poorest during the Blitz. She devoted herself tirelessly and unstintingly to public duty to the
end. Fancy visiting an aircraft carrier at the age of 101! That public duty is a concept that this House has always honoured and recognised above all else.
The Queen Mother's achievements and her litany of service are written in the hearts of the British people. They, and all of us in this House—and, I know, many former Members of this House, too—give thanks for a life lived to the full. She made her mark on this nation and her memory will be warmly cherished.
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