Bishop Martin Seeley of the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich pays tribute to Queen Elizabeth II

Bishop Martin Seeley of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich has paid tribute to the Queen following her death.

The head of the Diocese said Elizabeth II remained a stalwart figure during the toughest days of the last seven decades.

However, he expressed hope for the future, and that King Charles III will follow in his mother's footsteps.

Bishop Martin said: "I share in the profound sense of shock and grief that everybody is experiencing at the moment.

"For all of us, no matter who we are, coming to terms and accepting it will be a long process for us - as a nation, and as individuals."

He recalls feeling a sense of loss and absence on waking up this morning, following her death, that someone was missing.

He added that we often don't notice how significant people are in our lives until they're gone and her presence - the knowledge that she is there - has sustained us through these decades.

Queen Elizabeth II acceded to the throne in 1952 upon the death of her father.

Her reign saw the dissolution of the British Empire into the Commonwealth of Nations, consisting of 56 member states, most of which were former colonies.

Bishop Seeley added that when we gave thanks to the Queen, we didn't note achievement, but we gave thanks to who she was and what she represented.

He said: "We don't have a concrete definition of what it means to be British.

"But what have is a Monarch who embodies qualities we say are fundamentally important to being British, be it courage, resilience or fortitude, a sense of humour, or care for family."

Bishop Martin has been the Bishop for the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich since 2015.

Since then he has become actively involved locally, from encouraging the public to discover more about their communities, to easing people through the hard times during the pandemic.

As with all Bishops of a Diocese, Bishop Martin was invited to spend a weekend at Sandringham with the Queen.

While there, he ate with the Queen, chatted with her, the equerry and the lady in waiting about domestic matters, and even watched the news with her after all the other guests had left.

He feels getting an understanding of her daily life, even if it is under the most extraordinary circumstances, was remarkable and really humanised her.

The Queen, through years of experience, had also gained immense wisdom, which came through during conversations, he added.

Bishop Martin said: "Her love and concern for the Church was undeniable.

"The very reason she had bishops come visit her was due to her strong Christian faith, her role as the head of the Church of England, and desire to know her bishops.

"This came up in conversation during my time there and ensconced strong memories of her. On that final night, I thought to myself: 'it's remarkable, I'm sat here, with the Queen, watching the news!'"

Bishop Martin imagines most churches will remain open in the coming days to pay respects, and that Sunday services this week will likely honour the Queen's life.

He revealed many would have been planning in advance to have official pictures to use and candles to burn for those who wish to pay their respects.

Queen Elizabeth's death has brought seismic change, he feels.

He added: "We don't know how deep this goes. I think the sense of ourselves as a nation has been bound up in the person of the Queen, and to lose that person, is a both a national and personal grief.

"As we look forward and Charles steps into his mother's shoes, it's going to be different, because he's different."

Bishop Martin feels the Queen's Christian faith gave her a strong sense of assurance, which she conveyed to the rest of us.

He feels has helped in the challenging times we have been going through recently.

He concluded: "For me, it's a wait and see moment. The Monarchy continues, but it's going to be different.

"Charles has been preparing for this moment for his entire life. He will step into it with immense dignity and bring to it his own wisdom.

"He has been forged in the experiences of these last decades and I pray he has the patience and the confidence to move into this role while the nation grieves with him."