Queen Elizabeth II: marking our respect

Unique skills were honed and refined over seven decades spent serving the British public, writes Lee Wild, Head of Equity Strategy.

From the ravages of post-war Britain to the rapid advancement of the modern technology age, Queen Elizabeth II oversaw unprecedented social, economic and political change during her 70-year reign. Economic cycles came and went, so did prime ministers and their chancellors, boom turned to bust and back again, but the Queen remained unquestionably a cohesive force, leading a monarchy as any top-performing CEOs would, serving the interests of her subjects, delivering notable successes and riding out the inevitable bumps in the road with dignity, skill and diplomacy.

There were weekly visits by the British prime minister throughout her reign, 15 of them in all. She would no doubt have discussed decisions made by some of their 24 chancellors, from Winston Churchill’s finance minister Rab Butler in 1952 to Kwasi Kwarteng, appointed by Liz Truss only on Tuesday.

Her Majesty was a great friend of the City, the country’s finance industry and its business community. She was a huge supporter of British companies, from traditional industries and established ways of working to our world-leading modern engineering and technology sectors. Whether it was flying British Airways, driving a Land Rover or Rolls-Royce, visiting factories and corporate HQs, opening buildings and offices, or promoting our interests abroad, the Queen was an unrivalled ambassador for British business.

There will, of course, be questions asked in the months and years ahead, not least about the Commonwealth, one of the Queen’s great successes. The British Empire had already begun to dissolve with the partition of India less than six years before the Coronation; and the “winds of change” that swept through Africa during the 1960s threatened its very existence. That this voluntary group of member countries bound by friendship and economic interest remains viable today is in no small part to Queen Elizabeth’s tireless efforts.

Neither should her relationship with and influence over world leaders be underestimated. Queen Elizabeth met with 12 US presidents during her reign, from Eisenhower in 1957 to Joe Biden last year at Windsor Castle. Her skill courting powerful heads of state - entertaining Charles de Gaulle at the Royal Opera House, Hirohito at Buckingham Palace or German Chancellor Angela Merkel - went a long way to maintaining relations between the UK and Washington, Paris, Tokyo and Berlin. Events like these can change the course of history.

Queen Elizabeth’s 70 years of service to this country, unequalled experience at home and abroad, her ease with the public, presidents and Emperors alike, will not be seen again.