Elizabeth II
21 April 1926 - 8 September 2022
Former Queen of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth realms
Elizabeth II was Queen of the United Kingdom and the realms of the Commonwealth from her accession to the throne on the 6th February 1952, until her death on the 8th September 2022. Throughout the course of her lifetime she was Queen Regnant of 32 sovereign states and remained the monarch of 15 realms at the time of her death. Her reign of 70 years and 214 days is the longest of any British monarch and the second-longest verified reign of any monarch of a sovereign state in history. Generally regarded as the greatest reign in history, Elizabeth II's record-breaking reign shaped the way modern Britain was built and, at the time of her death in 2022, very few living people had known or remembered any other monarch. Throughout her reign she celebrated her Silver Jubilee in 1977, Ruby Jubilee in 1992, Golden Jubilee in 2002, Diamond Jubilee in 2012, Sapphire Jubilee in 2017 and Platinum Jubilee in 2022. Never before had a British monarch celebrated a Sapphire or Platinum Jubilee.
The Queen's reign began on Wednesday 6th February 1952 when her father, King George VI, died at Sandringham House in Norfolk. Six days prior to his death Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh had been seen off by The King as she departed for a visit to Kenya. George VI died in his sleep after returning to bed in his ''normal health''. He was found dead by a servant at 7:30am and the news was broadcast to the world at 10:45am. An explanation for the delay in the news being broadcast was almost certainly due to the location of the new Queen in Kenya, making communication to London difficult. Her husband, Philip, broke the news to her while staying at a game lodge. Shortly before her departure from the lodge, she was asked what name she will take as sovereign. Her Father, although his name was Albert reigned under the name, George. Elizabeth chose to retain her Christian name as sovereign, and was proclaimed as Queen Elizabeth II by the Accession Council back in London.
Queen Elizabeth II, the first Queen of the United Kingdom since Victoria, arrived at London Airport on the 9th February and was met by the Prime Minister Winston Churchill, Clement Attlee, Anthony Eden and Lord Woolton. She had not packed Mourning attire, so upon the aircraft's arrival, suitable clothing was taken onboard for her. On the advice of the Prime Minister, her coronation was not held for another 16 months. The ceremony itself was a historical moment, with it being the first Coronation to have been broadcast live on television. It was watched by 20 million people in the United Kingdom, with many families purchasing their first TV set for the occasion. Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, played a huge part in the planning of the occasion.
In 1965 she visited West Germany in what was the first the a British Sovereign had visited Germany in more than half a century.
On 21st October 1966 a coal mine accident in the Welsh village of Aberfan triggered an avalanche of mud, water and debris that wiped out a primary school, killing 116 children and 28 adults. Prince Philip visited the site of the disaster the following day, but Queen Elizabeth did not visit for more than a week, believing it would distract from the rescue and recovery efforts. According to multiple accounts from people within her inner circle, Elizabeth deeply regretted not travelling to Aberfan sooner. Through the rest of her reign, she would return to the village more times than she would anywhere else.
In 1970 The Queen travelled to Australia and New Zealand as part of a tour of the countries. During this visit she and Prince Philip strolled the streets of Sydney to greet crowds up close and personal, shaking hands along the way. This was the first time a monarch had undertaken a ''walkabout'', which has since become a common ritual during visits and important occaisions. The Queen's Daughter, Princess Anne, later said; ''We never shook hands [before]. The theory was, you couldn't shake hands with everybody, so don't start''.
In October 1986, Queen Elizabeth made history once again, by becoming the first British monarch ever to travel to China. It was widely viewed as one of the most important tours of her reign and is credited for being a critical diplomatic step toward improving relations betwen the two nations. The visit came two years after Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's government agreed to transfer sovereignty of Hong Kong to China, beginning in 1997. ''I am confident that the cooperative spirit which has been built up this way will continue to provide a reliable basis for the imaginative policies which are enshrined in that document'' - Queen Elizabeth II.
1992, the year of her Ruby Jubilee, has since become known as possibly the hardest year of her reign. That year, three of her children - Prince Charles, Prince Andrew and Princess Anne - saw their marriages fall apart. There was also a large fire at Windsor Castle, one of the Queen's official residences, which started when a spotlight posisioned too close to a curtain caught alight. In a speech to mark her Ruby Jubilee - 40 years on the throne - Elizabeth remarked that 1992 was not a near that she would look back upon with ''undiluted pleasure'' and that it was an ''annus horribilis'', which is Latin for ''horrible year''.
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