George VI (King of the United Kingdom) (1895-1952)

Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 1952 Feb 14 p. 1

Birth date: 1895

text of obituary:

BRITISH KING DIED AT AGE OF 56

King George VI,56-year-old monarch who ruled Britain since Dec.11, 1936 when his brother Edward abdicated, died in his sleep Wednesday, Feb. 6, after nearly a year of ill health. Cause of his death was believed to have been cancer, since he had submitted to removal of a cancerous lung a few months ago.

The Kings’ death brought to the throne his 25-year-old daughter Elizabeth, who was officially proclaimed Queen Elizabeth II upon her return from Equatorial Africa, where she and her husband, the Due of Edinburgh, had been on vacation. In accepting her new responsibilities, she said, “I pray that God will help me to discharge worthily this heavy task that has been laid upon me so early in my life.”

An elaborate, nation-wide funeral service will be held Feb. 15, and the King’s body later laid to rest beside other British rulers in Westminster Abbey.

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Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 1952 Feb 21 p. 1

text of obituary:

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BRITAIN’S KING GEORGE BURIED AT WINDSOR

Britons estimated at more than a million, lined the streets of London to witness the funeral procession as their 56-year-old ruler, King George VI, was carried to his final resting place. The procession covered three miles and took two and one-half hours. Behind the coffin were 10 bands and a horse-drawn carriage, in which were the young Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh.

Representatives from nations around the globe, including even Communist countries, attended the funeral. The Archbishop of Canterbury led the committal service in Windsor, solemnly intoning the words, “Dust to dust, ashes to ashes,” as the body was lowered down under a slab in historic St. George’s chapel.