Chief Rabbi of the United Kingdom Ephraim Mirvis released a video message on Twitter praising Queen Elizabeth II following her passing on Thursday, saying she “embodied the most noble values of British society.”
“Throughout her extraordinary reign, she conducted herself with grace, dignity and humility and was a global role model for distinguished leadership and selfless devotion to society. In an ever-changing world, she was a rock of stability and a champion of timeless values,” he added. “Every week in synagogue we have prayed for her welfare, well-being and wisdom, and she never let us down.”
He applauded the late queen’s “warm relationship” with the Jewish community, adding that she had a particular commitment to “interfaith relations and Holocaust memorial.”
“I recall how, on one occasion, she showed me and my wife items of Jewish interest and value in her private collection in Windsor Castle, including a Torah scroll rescued from Czechoslovakia during the Holocaust,” Mirvis recounted. “Her affection for the Jewish people ran deep, and her respect for our values was palpable.”
The Queen died on Thursday at the age of 96 as the longest reigning monarch in British history. She was surrounded by the royal family, including her children, at Balmoral Castle in Scotland.