Queen's cause of death confirmed as old age

The Queen died of old age, her death certificate has confirmed.

Queen Elizabeth II was 96 when she passed away on Thursday, 8 September, at her Balmoral estate after serving 70 years on the British throne.

Although there's been much speculation as to the cause of death, the late monarch's official death certificate was released to the public today (29 September).

PA

Alongside listing the usual details, under the 'cause of death' section it simply says 'old age', while the 'time of death' says 3.10pm.

Her official informant was shown to be Princess Anne, who had been by her majesty's bedside when she passed away alongside King Charles.

Three hours after saying their goodbyes, the news was announced to the world. What followed was an outpouring of emotion as the whole of the UK went into a 10-day period of mourning.

Meanwhile, people from across the globe travelled to London to queue for hours to see the Queen's coffin as she lay in state.

There's been just as loud a response in light of the recent news, with one writing on Twitter: "It’s still so unreal."

"I still can't believe she's gone," said another, while a third simply wrote, "So sad."

Others, however, questioned what 'old age' actually means.

"That's what they used to put on death certs back in the 18th/19th century when they didn't really know what the cause of death was? People don't die of 'old age'," said one.

"They die of some kind of medical condition/cause. There must be an ailment."

REUTERS/Alamy Stock Photo

There was much confusion as to why the National Records of Scotland took so long to release the death certificate before today.

Earlier this week, Angela Levin, author of Camilla: From Outcast to Queen Consort, told the Daily Mail: "Who is responsible for stopping this information from being made public, the head of State?

"I never think these sort of things last. If they are breaking the law in Scotland nobody is going to let it go.

"They are going to carry on until they have a proper answer as to why there is an exception being made on this particular occasion, especially if it is the law there.

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"I quite understand that in relation to the Queen that they might feel it is inappropriate to let everybody know what she died of and the time and date of her death, however you have to abide by the law as an example to all of us."

Now the document has been released, it appears to have raised more questions than answers for some.