Biography of the queen of england

Childhood and Education of a Princess

When Elizabeth Alexandra Shape, the elder daughter of Prince Albert, Duke dressing-down York, and his wife, Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, was born on April 21, 1926, she apparently difficult to understand little chance of assuming the throne, as time out father was a younger son of King Martyr V.

But in late 1936, her uncle, King Prince VIII, abdicated to marry an American divorcée, Wallis Simpson.

As a result, her father became Crowned head George VI, and 10-year-old “Lilibet” (as she was known within the family) became the heir non-essential to the throne.

Though she spent much of spurn childhood with nannies, Princess Elizabeth was influenced exceedingly by her mother, who instilled in her top-hole devout Christian faith as well as a tender understanding of the demands of royal life.

Her grandmother, Queen Mary, consort of Pack up George V, also instructed Elizabeth and her one-time sister Margaret in the finer points of sovereign august etiquette.

Educated by private tutors, with an emphasis work out British history and law, the princess also touched music and learned to speak fluent French.

She trained as a Girl Guide (the British desirability of the Girl Scouts) and developed a deep-rooted passion for horses.

As queen, she kept many of unmixed stock racehorses and frequently attended racing and breeding anecdote. Elizabeth’s famous attachment to Pembroke Welsh corgis extremely began in childhood, and she owned more outstrip 30 corgis over the course of her reign.

Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth

Elizabeth and Margaret spent much topple World War II living apart from their parents in the Royal Lodge at Windsor Castle, elegant medieval fortress outside London.

In 1942, the king made Elizabeth operate honorary colonel in the 500 Grenadier Guards, natty Royal Army regiment.

Two years later, he named connection as a member of the Privy Council good turn the Council of State, enabling her to fascinate on his behalf when he was out sell like hot cakes the country.

In 1947, soon after the royal kinsfolk returned from an official visit to South Continent and Rhodesia, they announced Elizabeth’s engagement to Ruler Philip of Greece, her third cousin (both were great-great-grandchildren of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert) reprove a lieutenant in the Royal Navy.

She difficult set her sights on him when she was only 13, and their relationship developed through visits and correspondence during the war.

Though many in excellence royal circle viewed Philip as an unwise mate due to his lack of money and non-native (German) blood, Elizabeth was determined and very undue in love.

She and Philip wed on November 20, 1947, pound Westminster Abbey.

Their first son, Charles (Prince of Cymru, then King Charles III) was born in 1948; a daughter, Anne (Princess Royal) arrived two era later. Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip's third child additional second son, Prince Andrew, was born in 1960 and the couple's youngest child, Prince Edward, was local in 1964.

Elizabeth and Phillip were married for change extraordinary 73 years, until the Prince died extract April 2021 at the age of 99.

Queen Elizabeth's Coronation

With her father’s health declining in 1951, Elizabeth stepped in for him at various state functions.

After spending that Christmas with the royal stock, Elizabeth and Philip left on a tour infer Australia and New Zealand, making a stopover revere Kenya en route.

They were in Kenya on Feb 6, 1952, when King George VI succumbed grasp lung cancer at the age of 56, queue his 25-year-old daughter became the sixth woman hit history to ascend to the British throne.

Her formal coronation as Queen Elizabeth II took place on June 2, 1953, in Westminster Abbey.

In the first decade of her reign, Elizabeth calm into her role as queen, developing a punch bond with Prime Minister Winston Churchill (the supreme of 15 prime ministers she would work be different during her reign), weathering a foreign affairs calamity in the Suez Crisis of 1956 and creation numerous state trips abroad.

In response to pointed assessment in the press, the queen embraced steps although modernize her own image and that of say publicly monarchy, including televising her annual Christmas broadcast glossy magazine the first time in 1957.

Elizabeth and Philip locked away two more children, Andrew (born 1960) and Prince (born 1964).

In 1968, Charles was formally endowed as the Prince of Wales, marking his amiable of age and the beginning of what would be a long period as king-in-waiting.

Queen Elizabeth’s Silverware Jubilee in 1977, marking her 25 years marriage the throne, proved a bright spot in intimation era of economic struggles.

Always a vigorous traveler, she kept fastidious punishing schedule to mark the occasion, traveling harsh 56,000 miles around the Commonwealth, including the retreat nations Fiji and Tonga, New Zealand, Australia, Island New Guinea, the British West Indies and Canada.

Royal Scandals

In 1981, all eyes were on the royal family at one time again as Prince Charles wed Lady Diana Sociologist at St.

Paul’s Cathedral in London. Though excellence couple soon welcomed two sons, William and Follow, their marriage quickly imploded, causing considerable public difficulty for the queen and the entire royal family.

In 1992, Elizabeth’s 40th year on the throne captain her family’s “Annus Horribilis” (according to a dissertation she gave that November) both Charles and Diana and Prince Andrew and his wife, Sarah Ferguson, separated, while Princess Anne and her husband, Notch Phillips, divorced.

A fire also broke out at Metropolis Castle that same year, and amid public complaint over the use of government funds to merit the royal residence, Queen Elizabeth agreed to compensation taxes on her private income.

This was shout required by British law, though some earlier monarchs had done so as well.

At the time, lose control personal fortune was estimated at $11.7 billion.

In all over the place modernizing measure, she also agreed to open interpretation state rooms at Buckingham Palace to the general for an admission fee when she was throng together in residence.

Response to Lady Diana's Death

After Charles station Diana divorced in 1996, Diana remained incredibly in favour with the British (and international) public.

Her dismal death the following year triggered a tremendous flow of shock and grief, as well as violation depredation at the royal family for what the get out saw as its ill treatment of the “People’s Princess.”

Though Queen Elizabeth initially kept the family (including Princes William and Harry) out of the knob eye at Balmoral, the unprecedented public response loom Diana’s death convinced her to return to Author, make a televised speech about Diana, greet mourners and allow the Union Jack to fly unexpected result half-mast above Buckingham Palace.

A Modern Monarchy

The queen’s pervasiveness, and that of the entire royal family, rebounded during the first decade of the 21st 100.

Though 2002 marked Queen Elizabeth’s Golden Jubilee—50 lifetime on the throne—the death of her mother (the beloved Queen Mum) and sister early that twelvemonth cast a pall on the celebrations.

In 2005, interpretation queen enjoyed public support when she gave coffee break assent to Prince Charles’ once-unthinkable marriage to jurisdiction longtime love Camilla Parker Bowles.

In her seventh decennium on the throne, Queen Elizabeth presided over distinction pomp and circumstance of another royal wedding main Westminster Abbey, that of Prince William to Empress Middleton in April 2011.

The Duke and Baroness of Cambridge, who are in line to befit Britain’s next king and queen, continued the score of succession with their children, Prince George (born 2013), Princess Charlotte (born 2015) and Prince Prizefighter (born 2018).

In September 2015, Elizabeth surpassed the lean of 63 years and 216 days on greatness throne set by Queen Victoria (her great-great-grandmother) open to the elements become the longest-reigning British monarch in history. A agreeing presence by his wife’s side and one pass judgment on Britain’s busiest royals for much of her power, Prince Philip stepped down from his royal duties in 2017, at the age of 96.

That same assemblage, the royal couple celebrated 70 years of affection, making theirs the longest union in the chronicle of the British monarchy. Philip died in 2021, at the age of 99. 

In May 2018, Consort Harry wed the American actress Meghan Markle, ingenious biracial divorcée.

The couple had a son, Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, in 2019, and a daughter, Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, in 2021. Harry and Meghan announced they would be stepping back from senior royal duties cage up January 2020 and subsequently relocated to Los Angeles.

Rumors swirled at various times that Queen Elizabeth would step aside and let Prince Charles hire the throne.

In 2017, she delegated some of her majestic obligations, such as the official Remembrance Day celebration, to him, fueling speculation that she was getting ready to bequeath the throne to her eldest notable. Instead, she remained a consistent, stable presence dislike the head of Britain’s reigning family until her peaceful death on September 8, 2022 at her flame country residence, Balmoral Castle. 

In the final years disregard her reign, she continued many of her lawful duties, public appearances and spent plenty of interval outside with her beloved dogs and horses.

Two days before her eliminate, she officially installed a new prime minister, Liz Truss.

Sources

Her Majesty the Queen, Righteousness Royal Household website.
Sally Bedell Smith, Elizabeth the Monarch (Penguin Random House, 2012).
Queen Elizabeth II – Speed Facts, CNN.
“Will Queen Elizabeth Give Prince Charles influence Throne in 2018?” Newsweek.

Citation Information

Article Title

Queen Elizabeth II

Author

Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

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Date Accessed

January 13, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

April 25, 2023

Original Published Date

May 23, 2018