I first heard the news of the death of the queen mother while sitting in a hotel room in Kumasi, Ghana. I was watching CNN International, a member of the CNN family of television stations that is broadcast by satellite from London and is seen all over Europe and Africa. The other main item of news that dominated the screen that Saturday evening was the continuing conflict in the Middle East. The continuing War on Terror also received a few minutes here and there.

These news items may seem disengaged, but they are very much connected. And the queen mother, aged 101 when she died, would have been one of the first to realize that fact.

Stressing the ties, even in death

In death, the queen mother, queen consort of a constitutional monarch proscribed from taking an active part in politics, made a profound political statement, unrealized by most observers. By requesting dominion troops at her funeral, the queen mother was remembering the vital role the nations of the British Commonwealth and Empire played in the two world wars that threatened Britain's very existence and the freedoms on which the Western world is built. She herself had played an important role in the second of those conflicts, a supportive role in the first.

Ironically, at the time of her death, troops of the nations that are still officially dominions, though the term is rarely used now, were fighting alongside British and American troops in Afghanistan, as part of the War on Terror.

One of the world's truly great women

Born Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon on Aug. 4, 1900, the lady who would become the first commoner in over two centuries to marry a future king, would live during the reigns of six monarchs and see the world change dramatically.

At the time of her birth, Queen Victoria was queen-empress, the head of state of Britain itself, of the British dominions around the world and of dozens of Britain's colonies, as well as empress of India, itself the second most populous nation on earth. Additionally, she was known affectionately as the grand-mama of Europe, her children having married into many of Europe's royal houses, adding to the power, influence and prestige of Britain herself. Britain was at the height of her power at this time, the Pax Britannica having given the world almost a century of relative peace. Victoria's son Edward VII was to be the last monarch to bask in all the glory and stability that was the British Empire.

On Elizabeth's 14th birthday, the Empire went to war. The war to end all wars, they called it. A war between all the major powers of Europe, it became known as the Great War until a later conflict when it became a number, World War I or the First World War. For numbers of military casualties, it was the worst war in history. Elizabeth's childhood home, Glamis Castle in Scotland, was turned into a convalescent home for troops from the dominions, the self-governing nations of the British Empire that did so much to aid Britain in this conflict. Australians, New Zealanders, Canadians and South Africans became friends. Elizabeth's devotion to the dominions no doubt began in these turbulent and formative years. After the Great War, she continued to write some of the soldiers whom she had helped nurse.

Also after the war she met the duke of York, second son of King George V, a nervous young man who was soon attracted to her. She turned down his first two proposals of marriage, as she did not want to be in the limelight as a member of the royal family. One consolation was that her "Bertie" would not be king, since his eldest brother, David, was first in line.

They married in 1923, Elizabeth becoming the duchess of York.

Their first child, Elizabeth, was born April 21, 1926. A second daughter, Margaret Rose, was born four years later. Although these events brought a great deal of press coverage, David was still the center of attention, "the most eligible bachelor in the world." On his frequent tours of Britain and the Empire, David, the prince of Wales, became a very popular figure and was constantly watched to see whom he might marry.

Soon after the death of his father, King George V, in January 1936, rumors began circulating about David's relationship with a married American divorcée, Wallis Simpson. Mrs. Simpson was estranged from her second husband and would soon be divorced from him. By this time, David was no longer prince of Wales. He was now King Edward VIII. But 1936 was to become the first year since 1483 that England had three monarchs, a sure sign of political instability.

The world's most important office

It is difficult for people today to appreciate the seriousness of the events that were to follow or the potential catastrophic consequences of one man's single-minded pursuit of the woman he loved. Over 75 percent of the British people today do not remember any monarch before the present queen, Elizabeth II. Only a handful will remember the Abdication Crisis of December 1936. Fewer still will be aware that this was very much an international crisis.

To understand why, we need to realize that in 1936, the British monarch held the most important office on earth. Today, that position is held by the president of the United States, the world's only superpower at this time. But in 1936 the British Empire was the world's only superpower-and the Empire was held together by a shared loyalty and devotion to the crown.

Everybody in the Empire in 1936 would have known the name of the king-emperor and would have recognized his face, on all the coins, banknotes and stamps that one third of all the peoples of the world used. But few would have been able to name the British prime minister or the prime ministers of the dominions or the viceroy of India. British power held sway over one quarter of the globe. It is misleading to say that the monarch was "only" a constitutional monarch. The monarch was the unifying symbol of the Empire and an essential part of the British concept of liberty and of parliamentary democracy that had spread to the four corners of the earth.

When it became clear that the new king wanted to marry Mrs. Simpson, there was division throughout the Empire and Commonwealth. Edward (David) was extremely popular, particularly with the working classes. But the king was also head of the Church of England and the state church did not permit divorce and remarriage.

Some of the dominions were also dead set against having a king who was married to a divorcée. Eventually Edward VIII abdicated the throne in favor of his brother George.

Neither George (Bertie) nor his wife, Elizabeth, wanted the awesome responsibility. Later, the queen mother was to feel that it shortened her husband's life considerably. He died after only 15 years as king, guiding his nation and the Empire through the dark days of World War II and the severe austerity that followed it. He was also to witness the beginning of the dismantling of the Empire. George VI and Elizabeth, his queen consort, were to be the last emperor and empress of India.

The new king and queen had experienced firsthand the loyalty and affection of the Empire when they had visited Canada immediately prior to World War II. Wherever they went, they were warmly greeted by millions of their Canadian subjects. They followed their visit to Canada with a state visit to the United States, where they were also warmly received, George VI being the first reigning British monarch to visit the American republic. This visit was to turn out to be very important, in light of subsequent events, helping to lay the foundation of a close alliance that continues to this day.

After the Abdication Crisis, it was World War II that restored the fortunes of the monarchy and Elizabeth herself was mostly responsible. Winston Churchill, wartime prime minister, had urged the king and queen to depart for Canada. He was not solely concerned about their safety and the well-being of the two princesses. He was also aware that Britain could lose its war with Hitler's Germany. The king and queen could then lead a government in exile which would rally the forces of the Empire to free Britain itself from despotism. Other European royal houses were already fulfilling similar roles in exile.

The queen refused to leave the British people. Instead, the king and queen remained in London during the blitz, the intense nightly bombing of the city by the German Luftwaffe. The royal couple was often seen visiting bomb sites, encouraging the civilian victims of this new type of warfare. When Buckingham Palace itself was bombed, the queen said: "Good. Now I can look the East End in the eye," a reference to the area of London that had suffered the most.

The importance of Commonwealth and American ties

During the war, Winston Churchill became a close confidante and friend. Following the prime minister's customary weekly visit to Buckingham Palace to keep the king informed of political and military developments, Churchill was often asked to stay for dinner. During these evenings he would frequently share his passion for history with the king and his family.

Churchill, the great Empire loyalist, stressed the importance of the Empire and Commonwealth to Britain's security and independence and to the freedoms of the world. The son of a British aristocrat and an American socialite, he also emphasized the growing importance of ties between the Commonwealth and the United States. Later, Churchill was to write his monumental History of the English Speaking Peoples, still one of the few historical works to look at British, imperial and American history as one.

After the war, the king and queen took their daughters on a tour of southern Africa, wanting to thank the peoples of the Empire for their support during the six-year conflict. On this visit, their eldest daughter, now the heir to the throne, the future Elizabeth II, dedicated her life to "the service of the great imperial family to which we all belong." This speech was recorded on her 21st birthday. Less than four months later, the new Labour [British spelling] government in London began dismantling the Empire which had been the free world's first line of defense going right back to the time of the first Queen Elizabeth in the late 16th century.

A later tour of other parts of the Empire was to be arranged to thank those countries, too, for their contribution to the imperial war effort. Sadly, the king's health would not permit future trips. He died of lung cancer on Feb. 6, 1952, aged 56. His wife was to live on for another 50 years.

On her 100th birthday she expressed the desire to see her daughter's Golden Jubilee, an accomplishment made by no previous queen mother. She was to live long enough to see the actual day (Feb. 6), but not long enough for the celebrations scheduled for June. Sadly, she also lived long enough to attend the funeral of her other daughter, Margaret, who died exactly seven weeks before her mother. Elizabeth was buried alongside her husband in St. George's Chapel, Windsor. In the same crypt are the ashes of Princess Margaret Rose.

British-American ties no accident

Addressing European criticism that the Bush administration's foreign policy is simplistic, Canadian Mark Steyn, now a resident of New Hampshire and a fervent supporter of the Bush administration's War on Terror, wrote the following in the British magazine The Spectator: "At decisive moments in human history, someone has to be simple, someone has to be primal. For two crucial years in the mid-20th century, the British Empire played that role alone, and in so doing saved the world."

Continuing from the same article: "Of the 20th century's three global conflicts-the First, Second and Cold Wars-who was on the right side each time? Germany: one out of three. Italy: two out of three. For a perfect triple, there's [sic] only Britain, America, Canada, Australia, New Zealand. Even now, with their military capabilities shriveled to almost nothing, the only guys actually on the ground in any combat role with the Americans are the British, Aussie and Kiwi SAS boys and Canada's JTF2" ("On the Right Side of History," Feb. 23, 2002).

Regular readers of this newsletter will know that such was prophesied to happen. The British Empire and the United States of America were part of the prophesied blessing to the children of ancient Israel. The two sons of Israel's favorite son Joseph were to "become a multitude of nations" (the British Empire and Commonwealth) and a "great" single nation, the United States of America (Genesis 48:19). "In the last days" (Genesis 49:1) these two brothers were to bring great prosperity to the world and be leaders in the constant struggle for freedom (verses 22-24).

I don't know if the queen mother ever read James Truslow Adams' History of the British Empire 1784-1939. The American historian wrote his historical account in 1940, at a time when the British Empire was fighting for its very existence against Nazi Germany and while America remained neutral. Adams ended his book with the following prophetic passage: "Different peoples may have different ideals of government but for those who have been accustomed to freedom of person and of spirit, the possible overthrow of the British Empire would be a catastrophe scarcely thinkable. Not only would it leave a vacuum over a quarter of the globe into which all the wild winds of anarchy, despotism and spiritual oppression could rush, but the strongest bulwark outside ourselves for our own safety and freedom would have been destroyed."

Included in those "wild winds of anarchy, despotism and spiritual oppression" that have succeeded the queen mother's beloved Empire and Commonwealth are the never-ending conflicts in the Middle East that threaten the very peace of the planet and the rising tide of Islamic fundamentalism which struck so suddenly on Sept. 11.

The death of the queen mother reminds us of what the world has lost. The conflict in the Middle East and the War on Terror are two of the awful consequences of that loss. WNP