Former United States president Barack Obama has paid tribute to the "extraordinary generosity" shown by the late Queen to his family. Mr Obama shared a video on Twitter, in which he described how he felt when he first met the monarch.
He said: “The first time that I met the Queen was visiting London. She reminded me very much of my grandmother – which surprised me.
“Not just in appearance but also in manner. Very gracious, but also no nonsense. Wry sense of humour, she could not have been more kind or thoughtful to me and Michelle.”
Later, Mrs Obama and the couple's two daughters travelled to the UK and were invited back to Buckingham Palace for tea. They also had the chance to ride around the grounds in the Queen's golden carriage.
Mr Obama said: "It was the sort of generosity and consideration that left a mark in my daughters’ lives that’s still there. The Queen was an excellent listener, she had a genuine curiosity, although she was impatient to get to the point.”
He also remembered an occasion when she wore a brooch that Mrs Obama had given her to a dinner at the US embassy in 2011. “It was an example of the subtle thoughtfulness that she consistently displayed not just to us, but to everybody who she interacted with,” he said.
“The combination of a sense of duty and a clear understanding of her role as a symbol for a nation and as the carrier of a certain set of values combined with a very human quality of kindness and consideration, I think that’s what made her so beloved not just in Great Britain but around the world.”
To pay your own tribute to Queen Elizabeth, click here.
