Queen Elizabeth II, the longest reigning monarch in England’s history, passed away on Thursday, Sep 8. at the age of 96.
The Queen’s reign began in 1952 after her father’s death, King George VI. She was crowned to the throne in 1953 and oversaw the British Commonwealth. Her coronation was one of the first worldwide broadcasted events. She reigned for 70 years until her death.
During World War II, Queen Elizabeth trained in the Auxiliary Territorial Services as a mechanic for the Subaltern Windsor Unit. She was the first female member of the royal family to serve in active duty.
In 1965, Queen Elizabeth became the first British royal to visit West Germany since 1913. This visit fell under the 20-year anniversary of World War II.
Queen Elizabeth became the first British monarch to visit China in 1986. The reason for this visit was to strengthen relations between both countries.
In 2011, Queen Elizabeth kicked off her four-day historic visit to Northern Ireland, becoming the first British monarch to visit in 100 years.
Queen Elizabeth remained neutral during the Brexit movement, which saw 53.5% of votes going toward leaving the EU. Despite this vote’s historical importance, Queen Elizabeth had to remain neutral on the situation due to her constitutional role.
Queen Elizabeth did many notable tasks during her reign as Queen, but some of the most extravagant were her Silver, Golden, Diamond, and Platinum Jubilees in 1997, 2002, 2012, and 2022, respectively. She was not only the longest-lived and longest reigning British monarch but also the second-longest verifiable reigning sovereign monarch in world history.
Elizabeth was born on April 21, 1926, in Mayfair, London as the first child of the Duke and Duchess of York. She was home-schooled and didn’t begin public duties until the second World War.
In November 1947, she married Philip Mountbatten, a former prince of Greece and Denmark. Philip Mountbatten was known for being the longest-serving royal consort in history upon his death.
Queen Elizabeth became the heir presumptive once her father acceded the throne to King Edward VIII in 1936. Queen Elizabeth gave birth to four children Charles III (1948), Anne, Princess Royal (1950), Prince Andrew, Duke of York (1960), Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex (1964).
She is preceded by her husband, Prince Phillip, who passed away on April 9, 2021. She is survived by her three sons King Charles III, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward, and her only daughter Anne, the Princess Royal. She is also survived by her eight grandchildren including Prince William, Prince Harry, Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie, and by numerous great-grandchildren.
The Queen will be laid to rest in Windsor.