Queen Elizabeth II  passes away.

Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-serving monarch in British history and an icon instantly recognisable to billions of people around the world, has died aged 96, Buckingham Palace said on Thursday.

Her eldest son, Charles, 73, succeeds as king immediately, according to centuries of protocol, beginning a new, less certain chapter for the royal family after the queen’s record-breaking 70-year reign.

“The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon,” Buckingham Palace said in a statement. “The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow.

Prince Charles will automatically become King on the day the Queen passes away,

Shortly before her death, the queen welcomed Liz Truss, the UK's new prime minister to her Balmoral estate

There are plans and national protocols that will have everything in place from the very moment the Queen passes away,