ANALYSIS | What has been Queen Elizabeth II's greatest achievement?

Queen Elizabeth's best moments on the Buckingham balcony 0:56

London (CNN) --

If you can't answer the question in the headline right away, it probably says more about it than it does about you.

Queen Elizabeth II has done so much for so long that it can be difficult to quantify and there is simply no one comparable.

Queen Margaret of Denmark has also been in office for a long time and is greatly admired by her subjects, but Elizabeth's reign has been longer and she has many more subjects.

The queen held a private audience to present the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry to Grace Nichols at Windsor Castle on Wednesday.

Perhaps we should first ask ourselves what is the main function of a monarch.

It is not to serve as long as possible;

it is to serve well and leave the throne in a stronger position than when he inherited it.

In this sense, Isabel has surpassed all forecasts.

Elizabeth has reigned through a period of change that threatened the monarchy on many fronts.

The media revolution has subjected an institution that largely eschewed accountability to unprecedented scrutiny and stripped it of some of the mystique that made it so intriguing.

This was accompanied by a loss of deference from society at large, which made the monarchy seem even more distant and unrelated.

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But the queen has a unique ability to turn threats into opportunities and has embraced the media to connect with her subjects, most notably inviting cameras to film her on her walks and in the crowd.

She televised the Christmas message and with it was introduced to the most intimate family moment of the British year.

She had an official social media account before any of her grandchildren.

The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh walk past children in Sabina Park, Kingston, during their visit to Jamaica in 1953.

But Elizabeth's biggest backlash has to be the Commonwealth.

When she ascended the throne, her empire -- which in her day was the largest on Earth -- was falling apart.

Country after country voted for independence and many saw it as the beginning of the end for the entire institution of monarchy.

Isabel, then still in her twenties, stopped the decay by offering her support to a fledgling group her father had overseen for post-colonial nations.

The Queen made the Commonwealth a priority and, under her leadership, it has grown from eight members to 54 today.

Because it is important?

Because the narrative changed.

As fast as she was losing authority with a sinking power base, she was regaining it as a figurehead of an association of independent states.

She maintained her international footprint and modernized at the same time.

The Queen opens the 2011 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Perth, Australia.

When he passes the crown to Carlos, he will be less vulnerable than he was when he received it, and that has to be his greatest achievement.

The queen's wish that the Commonwealth be strengthened with Charles at the helm was fulfilled in 2018, when the body named him its next head.

His promotion to office was not guaranteed, as the British king or queen are not automatically heads of the Commonwealth, rather it is the member countries who choose who takes office.

Since then, Charles has placed increasing importance on the modern Commonwealth as he prepares for his own reign.

He is increasingly taking on more Commonwealth responsibilities on behalf of his mother, such as when he led the family on Monday at the Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey.

Coinciding with that day, she also launched Climate Action Scholarships for students from small island nations, many of which are part of the Commonwealth.

Prince Charles and Camilla arrive at the Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey.

Charles will also represent the Queen at a rescheduled Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Kigali, Rwanda at the end of June.

The meeting was scheduled to take place in June 2020, but was postponed twice due to the coronavirus.

In a statement on Monday, Prince Charles said it was "more important than ever" for members to come together as the world continues to recover from the pandemic.

"As a family of some 2.6 billion people from fifty-four nations on six continents, the Commonwealth represents a rich diversity of traditions, experiences and talents that can help build a more equal, sustainable and prosperous future," he added.

But do not expect any kind of relief soon.

The queen may not have been well enough to attend this week's event, but in a message from Windsor she dispelled any suggestion that she might step down: "In this year of my Platinum Jubilee, I am pleased to renew the pledge I did in 1947, that my life will always be dedicated to service.

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