LONDON (AP) – Queen Elizabeth II was much more than Britain’s monarch. She was sovereign to another 14 nations and a rare figure on the world stage who was almost universally admired.
Her reach cut through hemispheres, generations, social divisions and politics.
The tributes that followed her death on Thursday came not only from United States (US) President Joe Biden but also from Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Elizabeth was Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, serving 70 years.
She had been on the throne since 1952, when the nation was still rebuilding from the destruction of World War II.
She became a global icon of calmness and fortitude through decades of political upheaval and social change.
During her reign, she met more than a dozen American presidents. President Joe Biden said he was informed of her death by senior advisors during a meeting in the Oval Office.

She was a “stateswoman of unmatched dignity and constancy who deepened the bedrock alliance between the United Kingdom and the US”, he and First Lady Jill Biden said in a statement.
The Bidens later went to the British Embassy to offer condolences. “We mourn for all of you. She was a great lady,” Biden told embassy staff.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, meanwhile, sent a telegram to King Charles III, Elizabeth’s son who automatically became Britain’s new monarch.
“For many decades, Elizabeth II rightfully enjoyed the love and respect of her subjects, as well as authority on the world stage. I wish you courage and perseverance in the face of this heavy, irreparable loss,” Putin wrote.
Elizabeth was mourned across Europe. In France, Britain’s historic rival and contemporary ally, officials ordered flags at the presidential palace and public buildings be lowered to half-staff yesterday.
President Emmanuel Macron hailed her “immutable moral authority” and her intimate knowledge of French.
He said no other foreign sovereign had visited the presidential palace more often than Elizabeth, who knew all eight presidents of contemporary France.
“The woman who stood alongside the giants of the 20th Century on the path of history has left to join them,” Macron said in a statement.
At the United Nations (UN), the Security Council stood in silent tribute at the start of a meeting on Ukraine. France’s UN Ambassador Nicolas De Riviere, the council president, sent condolences on behalf of its 15 members.
Elizabeth presided “over a period of historic changes both for her country and the world”, he said. “Her life was devoted to the service of her country.”