It was on 6 February 1952 that the future Queen, on holiday in Kenya, was informed of the death of her father, King George VI. At the time Kenya was a British colony, and during her reign, Queen Elizabeth was to see the crumbling of the British Empire. 

In the South Africa I grew up in, the British Royal family was never much loved, at least not in the circles I moved in. After all, the Anglo-Boer war and the defeat of the two Republics by the Empire was a recent memory. My paternal grandfather made a career in first the British, then Union of South Africa, civil service. His wife made a point that while she avidly followed news from "home" she was Scottish, and not British. In fact, the British forces, during the war, had interned her entire family because her father, a journalist, would not divulge his sources to the military administration.

The Apartheid regime did not lose much time to declare a Republic free from the crown, and also left the Commonwealth, an intergovernmental organisation formed mostly from some sixty erstwhile members of the British Empire. One of the first acts of the Mandela government of South Africa was to return to that club of English-speaking nations. 

Others will analyze Queen Elizabeth's deeds or misdeeds. But note: The recent hotly contested Presidential elections in Kenya turned on single-digit percentage points. The outcome was disputed, the Electoral Commission split. Did this crisis result in insurrection, bloodshed, chaos?

Some 22 million voters cast their ballots under the wary eye of some 18 000 local and foreign observers. Social media campaigns were unprecedented, as was a flood of misinformation and fake news. Suspicion of the new electronic voting system led to a triple hybrid system being employed, with fingerprints, ID numbers, photographs and a backup manual voter's register being employed.  

The outcome was disputed, the losing candidate and several Electoral Commissioners claiming irregularities. Kenyan media refrained from reporting while the matter was referred to the Court, reminiscent of the British "keep calm and muddle on" attitude. 

The Supreme Court ruling was clear: Chief Justice Koome declared that there was no evidence that the elections were rigged, and confirmed Mr. Ruto the winner by 50.5% of the vote.

This legacy of an independent judiciary, respect for the law, and respect for the electoral system is perhaps the most fitting legacy that Queen Elizabeth could have left for people who had been under her rule.