LONDON

Britain’s six former living prime ministers all paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth II in the wake of her death on Thursday.

John Major, prime minister between 1990 and 1997, the successor to Margaret Thatcher, said in a statement: "For 70 years Her Majesty The Queen devoted her life to the service of our nation and its wellbeing.”

"In her public duties she was selfless and wise, with a wonderful generosity of spirit. That is how she lived – and how she led,” he said.

"For millions of people – across the (British) Commonwealth and the wider world – she embodied the heart and soul of our nation, and was admired and respected around the globe," he added.

Tony Blair, prime minister between 1997 and 2009, said in a statement: “We have lost not just our monarch but the matriarch of our nation, the figure who more than any other brought our country together, kept us in touch with our better nature, personified everything which makes us proud to be British.”

“We will mourn her. We will miss her. But our overwhelming sentiment will be of gratitude, profound, heartfelt and sincere thanks for what she did, what she stood for, for the life she lived and for what she gave us, her grateful subjects. Her reign was indeed glorious. And it was our great good fortune to have had her reign over us,” he said.

Gordon Brown, prime minister between 2007 and 2010, said in a statement: “The United Kingdom, the Commonwealth, and the entire world are joined together in mourning this evening. HM Queen Elizabeth II served this country to the last. I offer my sincere condolences to the Royal Family. May she rest in peace.”

David Cameron, prime minister between 2010 and 2016, said in a statement that there were “no words that can adequately express the sense of loss our nation will feel" and that the queen had been "a rock of strength for our nation and the Commonwealth.”

"There can simply be no finer example of dignified public duty and unstinting service, and we all owe our sincere gratitude for her continued devotion, living every day by the pledge she made on her 21st birthday. Her dedication to our country has been incomparable and, as such, she leaves an enduring legacy,” he said.

"My thoughts and prayers are with the King and the royal family at this time of great sadness,” Cameron said. "The country has lost a devoted public servant; and the royal family has lost a much-loved mother, grandmother and great grandmother."

'Great Elizabethan era'

Theresa May, prime minister between 2016 and 2019, said in a statement: "Her Majesty witnessed tremendous change, moving adroitly with the times but always providing stability and reassurance. She was our constant throughout this great Elizabethan era.”

"It was the honour of my life to serve her as prime minister,” she said. “Our thoughts and prayers now are with her family. God Save The King."

Boris Johnson, who served as prime minister from July 2019 until earlier this week, when he handed in his resignation to the queen, said in a statement: "This is our country's saddest day. In the hearts of every one of us there is an ache at the passing of our Queen, a deep and personal sense of loss – far more intense, perhaps, than we expected.”

"In these first grim moments since the news, I know that millions and millions of people have been pausing whatever they have been doing, to think about Queen Elizabeth, about the bright and shining light that has finally gone out,” he said.

"Wave after wave of grief is rolling across the world, from Balmoral – where our thoughts are with all the Royal family – and breaking far beyond this country and throughout that great Commonwealth of nations that she so cherished and which cherished her in return,” he continued.

"As is so natural with human beings, it is only when we face the reality of our loss that we truly understand what has gone,” he added.

"Though our voices may be choked with sadness, we can still stay with confidence the words not heard in this country for more than seven decades,” he said.

"God Save The King."