Hello and welcome to the intelligence from The Economist. I'm your host, Jason Palmer, in London, the capital of a country in mourning.

Yesterday, a moment that had been as anticipated as it was dreaded. The BBC is interrupting its normal programmes to bring you an important announcement.

The whole of Britain, it seemed, came to a halt. This is BBC News from London. Buckingham Palace

has announced the death of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. In a statement, the palace said,

the Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon.

All the Queen's children had travelled to be with her at Balmoral Castle,

her beloved private residence in Scotland.

It's hard to overstate,

even to explain what and how much the Queen meant to Britain,

if only because of how long she reigned. As head of state, she seemed imbued with great power

from a bygone age, yet for all the trappings and symbols of royalty, her formal role remained

ceremonial. Yet she held, holds, untold power over the British

spirit, a motherly figure who created the modern monarchy, presiding over a period of immense change

as the sun set over the British Empire. Prime ministers and American presidents came and went, and there she remained.

As the tributes poured in, one of the most common words to be heard was continuity.

The other was duty. Her reign was filled with ribbon cuttings and meet and greets,

proof of her sense of obligation to the people of Britain,

all of them, not just the politicos and the elites.

She was tireless in those duties, official and otherwise, right up until Tuesday,

when she tapped the 15th Prime Minister of her reign, Liz Truss, who spoke from Downing Street last night.

Queen Elizabeth II was the rock on which modern Britain was built.

Our country has grown and flourished under her reign.

...