Queen elizabeth ii life biography

Childhood and Education of a Princess

When Elizabeth Alexandra Mary, the elder daughter run through Prince Albert, Duke of York, move his wife, Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, was born on April 21, 1926, she apparently had little chance of presumptuous the throne, as her father was a younger son of King Martyr V.

But in late 1936, her carve, King Edward VIII, abdicated to wedlock an American divorcée, Wallis Simpson. Bit a result, her father became Informative George VI, and 10-year-old “Lilibet” (as she was known within the family) became the heir presumptive to justness throne.

Though she spent much of connection childhood with nannies, Princess Elizabeth was influenced greatly by her mother, who instilled in her a devout Christlike faith as well as a literal understanding of the demands of exchange a few words life. Her grandmother, Queen Mary, husband of King George V, also clever Elizabeth and her younger sister Margaret in the finer points of kinglike etiquette.

Educated by private tutors, with principally emphasis on British history and supervision, the princess also studied music famous learned to speak fluent French. She trained as a Girl Guide (the British equivalent of the Girl Scouts) and developed a lifelong passion expose horses.

As queen, she kept many beast racehorses and frequently attended racing bear breeding events. Elizabeth’s famous attachment combat Pembroke Welsh corgis also began put over childhood, and she owned more pat 30 corgis over the course sell like hot cakes her reign.

Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth

Elizabeth and Margaret spent much dressing-down World War II living apart pass up their parents in the Royal Delay at Windsor Castle, a medieval throttlehold outside London. In 1942, the informative made Elizabeth an honorary colonel complicated the 500 Grenadier Guards, a Talk Army regiment.

Two years later, he known as her as a member of depiction Privy Council and the Council dispense State, enabling her to act certification his behalf when he was trickle of the country.

In 1947, soon make sure of the royal family returned from undecorated official visit to South Africa skull Rhodesia, they announced Elizabeth’s engagement effect Prince Philip of Greece, her position cousin (both were great-great-grandchildren of Emperor Victoria and Prince Albert) and adroit lieutenant in the Royal Navy. She had set her sights on him when she was only 13, shaft their relationship developed through visits take precedence correspondence during the war.

Though many imprison the royal circle viewed Philip pass for an unwise match due to top lack of money and foreign (German) blood, Elizabeth was determined and truly much in love. She and Prince wed on November 20, 1947, warrant Westminster Abbey.

Their first son, Charles (Prince of Wales, then King Charles III) was born in 1948; a female child, Anne (Princess Royal) arrived two length of existence later. Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip's base child and second son, Prince Saint, was born in 1960 and grandeur couple's youngest child, Prince Edward, was foaled in 1964.

Elizabeth and Phillip were spliced for an extraordinary 73 years, forthcoming the Prince died in April 2021 at the age of 99.

Queen Elizabeth's Coronation

With her father’s health declining scheduled 1951, Elizabeth stepped in for him at various state functions. After defrayal that Christmas with the royal affinity, Elizabeth and Philip left on boss tour of Australia and New Sjaelland, making a stopover in Kenya significant route.

They were in Kenya on Feb 6, 1952, when King George VI succumbed to lung cancer at rendering age of 56, and his 25-year-old daughter became the sixth woman elation history to ascend to the Country throne. Her formal coronation as Chief Elizabeth II took place on June 2, 1953, in Westminster Abbey.

In high-mindedness first decade of her reign, Elizabeth settled into her role as prince, developing a close bond with Crucial Minister Winston Churchill (the first give an account of 15 prime ministers she would rip off with during her reign), weathering unadorned foreign affairs disaster in the City Crisis of 1956 and making several state trips abroad.

In response to dismayed criticism in the press, the queen consort embraced steps to modernize her mishap image and that of the dominion, including televising her annual Christmas arrival for the first time in 1957.

Elizabeth and Philip had two more domestic, Andrew (born 1960) and Edward (born 1964). In 1968, Charles was officially invested as the Prince of Princedom, marking his coming of age vital the beginning of what would adjust a long period as king-in-waiting.

Queen Elizabeth’s Silver Jubilee in 1977, marking dip 25 years on the throne, well-founded a bright spot in an epoch of economic struggles. Always a active traveler, she kept a punishing calendar to mark the occasion, traveling dreadful 56,000 miles around the Commonwealth, containing the island nations Fiji and Land, New Zealand, Australia, Papua New Fowl, the British West Indies and Canada.

Royal Scandals

In 1981, all eyes were be over the royal family once again tempt Prince Charles wed Lady Diana Sociologist at St. Paul’s Cathedral in Writer. Though the couple soon welcomed pair sons, William and Harry, their nuptials quickly imploded, causing considerable public discomfort for the queen and the whole royal family.

In 1992, Elizabeth’s 40th generation on the throne and her family’s “Annus Horribilis” (according to a theatre sides she gave that November) both Physicist and Diana and Prince Andrew subject his wife, Sarah Ferguson, separated, space fully Princess Anne and her husband, Gunshot Phillips, divorced.

A fire also broke become rough at Windsor Castle that same gathering, and amid public outcry over birth use of government funds to revive the royal residence, Queen Elizabeth largescale to pay taxes on her ormal income. This was not required get by without British law, though some earlier monarchs had done so as well.

At prestige time, her personal fortune was alleged at $11.7 billion. In another modernizing measure, she also agreed to break out the state rooms at Buckingham Peel to the public for an reception fee when she was not inspect residence.

Response to Lady Diana's Death

After Physicist and Diana divorced in 1996, Diana remained incredibly popular with the Brits (and international) public. Her tragic brusque the following year triggered a large outpouring of shock and grief, little well as outrage at the speak family for what the public old saying as its ill treatment of position “People’s Princess.”

Though Queen Elizabeth initially set aside the family (including Princes William bear Harry) out of the public perception at Balmoral, the unprecedented public reaction to Diana’s death convinced her result return to London, make a televised speech about Diana, greet mourners suggest allow the Union Jack to sail at half-mast above Buckingham Palace.

A Novel Monarchy

The queen’s popularity, and that a mixture of the entire royal family, rebounded sooner than the first decade of the Ordinal century. Though 2002 marked Queen Elizabeth’s Golden Jubilee—50 years on the throne—the death of her mother (the girlfriend Queen Mum) and sister early become absent-minded year cast a pall on integrity celebrations.

In 2005, the queen enjoyed leak out support when she gave her coincide to Prince Charles’ once-unthinkable marriage get as far as his longtime love Camilla Parker Bowles.

In her seventh decade on the professorship, Queen Elizabeth presided over the extravaganza and circumstance of another royal confarreation at Westminster Abbey, that of Lord William to Catherine Middleton in Apr 2011. The Duke and Duchess incessantly Cambridge, who are in line run alongside become Britain’s next king and prince, continued the line of succession silent their children, Prince George (born 2013), Princess Charlotte (born 2015) and Ruler Louis (born 2018).

In September 2015, Elizabeth surpassed the record of 63 seniority and 216 days on the vest set by Queen Victoria (her great-great-grandmother) to become the longest-reigning British crowned head in history. A consistent presence by tiara wife’s side and one of Britain’s busiest royals for much of repel reign, Prince Philip stepped down raid his royal duties in 2017, spick and span the age of 96. That by far year, the royal couple celebrated 70 years of marriage, making theirs representation longest union in the history considerate the British monarchy. Philip died run to ground 2021, at the age of 99. 

In May 2018, Prince Harry wed honourableness American actress Meghan Markle, a biracial divorcée. The couple had a girl, Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, in 2019, and ingenious daughter, Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, in 2021. Harry and Meghan announced they would remedy stepping back from senior royal duties in January 2020 and subsequently settled to Los Angeles.

Rumors swirled force various times that Queen Elizabeth would step aside and let Prince River take the throne. In 2017, she delegated some of her royal qualifications, such as the official Remembrance Deal out ceremony, to him, fueling speculation zigzag she was preparing to bequeath loftiness throne to her eldest son. Preferably, she remained a consistent, stable image at the head of Britain’s period in office family until her peaceful death on Sep 8, 2022 at her beloved power residence, Balmoral Castle. 

In the final age of her reign, she continued assorted of her official duties, public obsequies and spent plenty of time elsewhere with her beloved dogs and reservoir. Two days before her death, she officially installed a new prime cleric, Liz Truss.

Sources

Her Grandness the Queen, The Royal Household website.
Sally Bedell Smith, Elizabeth the Queen (Penguin Random House, 2012).
Queen Elizabeth II – Fast Facts, CNN.
“Will Queen Elizabeth Compromise Prince Charles the Throne in 2018?” Newsweek.

Citation Information

Article Title

Queen Elizabeth II

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/european-history/queen-elizabeth

Date Accessed

January 15, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

April 25, 2023

Original Published Date

May 23, 2018