Mississauga mourns death of Queen Elizabeth II after 70 years on the throne

Flags at all City of Mississauga buildings are flying at half-mast in memory of Queen Elizabeth II, who served as Queen of the United Kingdom, Canada and the Commonwealth for 70 years until her death earlier today (Sept. 8) at the age of 96.

In a post to social media, City officials said the Mississauga Civic Centre clock tower will also be dimmed tonight in her honour.

“Our thoughts are with the Royal Family,” City officials said in a tweet posted shortly after the Queen’s death was announced to the world at about 1:30 p.m. (EST).

In a separate post to Twitter, Mayor Bonnie Crombie passed along her “deepest condolences to the Royal Family and the people of the United Kingdom mourning the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Flags at City buildings will be lowered to half-mast and the clock tower dimmed in honour of her legacy and service to the people of Great Britain.”

Peel Regional Police also took to social media to offer condolences.

“We mourn the loss of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada, who devoted her life to public service and persevered in her promise to serve Canadians and the entire Commonwealth. Our thoughts are with the people of the United Kingdom today.”

Meanwhile, Mississauga officials have made a book of condolences available to the public in the Great Hall at the Civic Centre that will “honour the life, reign and work” of the Queen.

It will be available starting Friday (Sept. 9) from noon to 9 p.m. and daily from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. after that.

“Mississauga residents and visitors are invited to pay their respects to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by sharing messages in the Book of Condolences, which will delivered to the Royal Family on behalf of the City,” City officials say.

Elizabeth II instantly became one of the world’s most famous women at the age of 25, when her father’s death in 1952 made her England’s sixth ruling queen and longest-reigning monarch.

Buckingham Palace announced this morning (Sept. 8) that the Queen had been placed under medical supervision because doctors were concerned for her health.

My deepest condolences to the @RoyalFamily & the people of the United Kingdom mourning the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Flags at city buildings will be lowered to half-mast and the clock tower dimmed in honour of her legacy and service to the people of Great Britain. https://t.co/0DAU4iGFYJ

— Bonnie Crombie 🇨🇦 (@BonnieCrombie) September 8, 2022

Prince Charles, heir to the throne, along with his wife, Camilla, and sister, Princess Anne, were with the Queen at Balmoral Castle, her summer residence in Scotland. Other members of the Royal Family, including Charles’ sons, Princes William and Harry, were said to be en route.

The Queen had increasingly handed over duties to Charles and other members of the Royal Family in recent months as she recovered from a bout of COVID-19, began using a cane and struggled to get around.

One of many links between the Queen and Mississauga spanning some seven decades actually had to do with a Russian Grand Duchess and her decision to settle in Mississauga just about the same time Elizabeth II became Queen.

Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna retired to a small home in Mississauga in the early 1950s and shortly before her death at the end of that decade, she spent some time with Queen Elizabeth II.

–with files from The Canadian Press