Laß, Fürstin, laß noch einen Strahl...

There is a photograph in my late mother’s album from when she was a teenager in the late 1930s.  Today, with the sad passing of Queen Elizabeth II, an era has ended.  And I have an opportunity to share an historic photograph as a way to honor the Queen’s amazing 70 year reign, and to draw a tenuous connection, a moment in time, which my Mom and then-Princess Elizabeth shared back in 1938.
My mother was a conscientious student in high school, and earned grades for her matriculation exams which put her in the highest percentile of pupils from the then Union of South Africa, of course, part of the British Commonwealth.  The reward for their hard work, was for these students from all over South Africa to be taken on a long sea voyage to the U.K. and back.  The highlight of the trip was a visit to Sandringham to meet with the Royal Family.  I remember my Mom telling me that The Men  - i.e. the King, George VI and his retinue - had all gone hunting, so the school group was met by three generations of Royal Family women - and a Corgi, - and were photographed by, presumably the official Palace photographer.  Right in the center, is Queen Mary – of Teck – widow of George V.  To her left in the photograph are the two young princesses, Elizabeth and Margaret.  And to their left in the photograph is their mother, Queen Elizabeth - Bowes-Lyon -, the Queen Mother.  And way over to the left of the photograph, third in from the end, with her hat at a jaunty angle, is my Mom, aged 17.  This photograph has somehow imbued in me a fondness for Queen Elizabeth.  Along with her many, many loyal subjects, I feel the sadness of her passing today. 
I have been put in mind of a secular cantata composed by Johann Sebastian Bach and first performed in Leipzig in 1727.  The cantata was commissioned by the University of Leipzig to honor the passing of Christiane Eberhardine, the wife of August II, Elector of Saxony and King of Poland.  The text is attributed to Johann Christoph Gottsched, professor of philosophy and poetry at the University.  The cantata’s title is, Laß, Fürstin, laß noch einen Strahl - Gracious Lady, let one more ray of light shine… , listed as BWV 198 in the Collected Works of Bach.  The work is also know as Trauerode, or Ode of Sadness.  While this work is secular, it makes many religious allusions. However, the essential sentiment expressed is that the kingdom is in mourning over the Queen’s passing, how magnificent she was, and how sadly she will be missed. 
I am indebted to Wiki for detailed information on the Royal Family and Trauerode.

Majesty, may you rest in peace.