The Queen has said she is "deeply saddened" to learn of Nelson Mandela's death and has sent her "sincere condolences to his family and to the people of South Africa".A statement from Buckingham Palace said: "Her Majesty remembers with great warmth her meetings with Mr Mandela"."He worked tirelessly for the good of his country, and his legacy is the peaceful South Africa we see today".Mr Mandela made his first state visit to the UK in 1996.The Prince of Wales said Mr Mandela was the "embodiment of courage and reconciliation".Paying tribute to the former South African president, Prince Charles added: "He was also a man of great humour and had a real zest for life."With his passing, there will be an immense void not only in his family's lives, but also in those of all South Africans and the many others whose lives have been changed through his fight for peace, justice and freedom."The world has lost an inspired leader and a great man. My family and I are profoundly saddened and our thoughts and prayers are with his family."'Extraordinary and inspiring'On Thursday night, Prince William said the death of Mandela was "extremely sad and tragic".The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were attending the premiere of Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, a film about the former South African president, when news of Mr Mandela's death broke.Speaking after the film, Prince William said: "We were just reminded of what an extraordinary and inspiring man Nelson Mandela was and my thoughts and prayers are with him and his family right now."Prime Minister David Cameron said Mr Mandela was a "hero of our time".Labour MP Peter Hain, whose family fled South Africa during apartheid, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that parliament's Westminster Hall was to hold a "major event" to commemorate Mr Mandela's life.He said that it was important not only for MPs to pay tribute to Mr Mandela but "for others to come together and commemorate an incredible life, a person who was a bright beacon of justice and liberty which shone right across the world and sadly [is] now extinguished."The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend Justin Welby, was among others in the UK to pay tribute to Mr Mandela.He said: "South Africa has lost its greatest citizen and its father. Nelson Mandela, fighting to the end, is freed to be with his God in joy and reward for his great service and sacrifice."'Power of love'Britain's first black cabinet minister, Lord Boateng, who served as high commissioner in South Africa, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "There was a focus and a discipline to his activism, always."But imbuing it all was this overpowering sense, one had when one met him and worked with him, of the power of love. That's not a word that politicians use much but he was a consummate politician."Meanwhile, England's cricket squad paid their respects to Mr Mandela by wearing black armbands as they stood for a two-minute silence before the start of the second day of the Second Test against Australia in Adelaide.Mr Mandela, 95, had been receiving intense home-based medical care for a lung infection after three months in hospital.His death was announced on South African national TV by the country's president Jacob Zuma.Flowers, candles and other tributes have been left outside the South African High Commission in Trafalgar Square.The site was the once the scene of freedom vigils for Mr Mandela, who led South Africa's transition from white-minority rule in the 1990s after serving 27 years in prison for his political activities.(BBC)ANN.Az