LONDON: British Prime Minister Liz Truss hailed Queen Elizabeth on Thursday as the "very spirit of Great Britain" and the rock on which modern Britain was built after the monarch died peacefully at her home in Scotland.

Speaking outside her Downing Street office and residence, Truss said the queen had been "a personal inspiration to me and to many Britons".

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"Queen Elizabeth II was the rock on which modern Britain was built. Our country has grown and flourished under her reign. Britain is the great country it is today because of her," she said.