Both the Bishops of Ely and Huntingdon believe the Queen “provided the moral compass which all public leadership should emulate”.

The Right Reverend Stephen Conway, Bishop of Ely and the Rt Revd Dr Dagmar Winter, Bishop of Huntingdon, paid tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II who died on September 8.

In a joint statement, they said: “It is taking time to sink in that the monarch most of us have trusted and relied on all our lives has been promoted to glory.

“For us as Christians she has fulfilled her role as Defender of the Faith, the most effective Christian witness in public life around the world through her Christmas broadcasts and the manner of her life.

“She unashamedly lived her life in and for Christ our Lord.”

Both Bishops Conway and Winter acknowledged the Queen’s impact in connecting residents across Cambridgeshire during times of celebration.

“We can say with conviction and knowledge that Elizabeth II provided the moral compass which all public leadership should emulate,” they said.

Cambs Times: The Rt Revd Stephen Conway, Bishop of Ely.The Rt Revd Stephen Conway, Bishop of Ely. (Image: Ely Diocese)

“Not only in the United Kingdom but throughout the other nations, where she has been head of state and head of the Commonwealth.

“Many of us will remember her visit already in her nineties to the plant research centre outside Cambridge when she was determined to plant the tree herself.

“She went on to open the Royal Papworth Hospital, revealing her commitment to serve and her resilience to meet the demands of her office as our Queen at an age when everyone else had retired.”

Cambs Times: The Rt Revd Dr Dagmar Winter, Bishop of Huntingdon.The Rt Revd Dr Dagmar Winter, Bishop of Huntingdon. (Image: Archive)

Bishops Conway and Winter praised the Queen’s determination to carry out different tasks, such as planting a tree at a plant research centre near Cambridge despite being in her nineties.

And they thanked the Queen for her service as the nation’s longest-reigning monarch.

They added: “A reign has ended, and a new reign has begun.

“We give thanks for one Sovereign and pray God’s blessing upon King Charles III.

We must take time to mourn; but we say already, God save the King. We pray for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon our new monarch.

“Long may he reign over us.”