Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom

Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor, born 21 April 1926), styled Her Majesty The Queen, is the Queen regnant of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, and Saint Kitts and Nevis. About 125 million people live in the countries of which she is Head of State. She is thirty-eighth in line of descent from Egbert, King of Wessex.

Early life

Elizabeth was born at 21 Bruton Street in Mayfair, London on 21 April, 1926. Her father was HRH The Prince Albert, Duke of York (later King George VI), the second eldest son of King George V and Queen Mary. Her mother was HRH The Duchess of York (née Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon), the daughter of Claude George Bowes-Lyon, 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne and his wife, the Countess of Strathmore. She was baptised in the Music Room of Buckingham Palace by Cosmo Lang, the then Archbishop of York and her godparents were King George and Queen Mary, the Princess Royal, the Duke of Connaught, the Earl of Strathmore and Lady Elphinstone.

Related Topics:
Mayfair - London - 21 April - 1926 - The Prince Albert, Duke of York - King George V - Queen Mary - Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon - Claude George Bowes-Lyon, 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne - Buckingham Palace - Cosmo Lang - Archbishop of York - Princess Royal - Duke of Connaught - Earl of Strathmore - Lady Elphinstone

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Elizabeth was named after her mother, while her two middle names are those of her paternal great-grandmother Queen Alexandra and grandmother Queen Mary respectively. As a child she was known as 'Lilibet' by her close family.

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As a granddaughter of the British sovereign in the male line, she held the title of a British princess with the style Her Royal Highness. Her full style was HRH Princess Elizabeth of York. At the time of her birth, she was third in the line of succession to the crown, behind her father and her uncle, HRH The Prince of Wales, later King Edward VIII. Although her birth generated public interest, no one could have predicted that she would become Queen. It was widely assumed that her uncle, the enormously popular Prince of Wales, would marry and have children in due course.

Related Topics:
British princess - ''Her Royal Highness'' - Line of succession to the crown - The Prince of Wales, later King Edward VIII

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Education

The young Princess Elizabeth was educated at home, as was her younger sister, Princess Margaret, under the supervision of her mother, then the Duchess of York. Her governess was Marion Crawford, better known as "Crawfie". She studied history with C. H. K. Marten, Provost of Eton, and also learned modern languages. She now speaks fluent French, as she has shown on several occasions, most recently during her 2004 state visit to France to commemorate the centenary of the Entente Cordiale but also on numerous visits to Canada. She was instructed in religion by the Archbishop of Canterbury and has always been a strong believer in the Church of England.

Related Topics:
Princess Margaret - Governess - Marion Crawford - Eton - French - 2004 - France - Entente Cordiale - Canada - Archbishop of Canterbury - Church of England

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Heiress Presumptive

When her father became King in 1936 upon her uncle King Edward VIII's abdication, she became heiress presumptive and was henceforth known as HRH The Princess Elizabeth. She was thirteen years old when World War II broke out. She and her younger sister Princess Margaret were evacuated to Windsor Castle, Berkshire. There was some suggestion that the princesses be sent to Canada, but their mother the Queen refused to consider this, saying, "The children could not possibly go without me, I wouldn't leave without the King, and the King won't leave under any circumstances". In 1940 Princess Elizabeth made her first broadcast, addressing other children who had been evacuated.

Related Topics:
1936 - King Edward VIII - Heiress presumptive - World War II - Princess Margaret - Evacuated - Windsor Castle - Canada - 1940

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Military service

In 1945 Princess Elizabeth convinced her father that she should be allowed to contribute directly to the war effort. She joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service (the ATS) where she was known as No 230873 Second Subaltern Elizabeth Windsor, and was trained as a driver. This training was the first time she had been taught together with other students. It is said that she greatly enjoyed this and that this experience led her to send her own children to school rather than have them educated at home. She was the first (and as of 2005 the only) female member of the royal family to actually serve in the military, though other royal women have been given honorary ranks.

Related Topics:
1945 - Auxiliary Territorial Service - Subaltern

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Elizabeth made her first official visit overseas in 1947, when she accompanied her parents to South Africa. On her 21st birthday she made a broadcast to the British Commonwealth and Empire, pledging to devote her life to the service of the people of the Commonwealth and Empire.

Related Topics:
1947 - South Africa - British Commonwealth - Empire

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Marriage and motherhood

Elizabeth married HRH The Duke of Edinburgh on 20 November 1947. The Duke is Queen Elizabeth's third cousin; they share Queen Victoria as a great-great-grandmother. They are also both descended from Christian IX of Denmark (she being a great-great granddaughter through Alexandra of Denmark, and the Duke is a great-grandson through George I of Greece). Prince Philip had renounced his claim to the Greek throne and was simply referred to as Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten before being created Duke of Edinburgh before their marriage. This marriage, although not arranged as such, was eminently suitable for a female heir to the throne, as Philip had been trained for royal responsibilities.

Related Topics:
The Duke of Edinburgh - 20 November - 1947 - Christian IX of Denmark - Alexandra of Denmark - George I of Greece - Greek - Duke of Edinburgh

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After their wedding Philip and Elizabeth took up residence at Clarence House, London. On 14 November 1948 she gave birth to her first child Prince Charles of Edinburgh. Several weeks earlier letters patent had been issued so that her children would enjoy a royal and prince status they would not otherwise have been entitled to. Otherwise they would have been styled merely as children of a duke. They had four children (see below) in all. Though the Royal House is named Windsor, it was decreed via a 1960 Order-in-Council that the descendants of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip should have the personal surname Mountbatten-Windsor.

Related Topics:
Clarence House - 14 November - 1948 - Prince Charles of Edinburgh - Letters patent - Royal House - Windsor - 1960 - Order-in-Council - Mountbatten-Windsor

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Children and grandchildren

• HRH The Prince Charles, Prince of Wales (Charles Philip Arthur George) (born 14 November 1948), married (29 July 1981) and divorced (28 August 1996) Lady Diana Frances Spencer (July 1, 1961–August 31, 1997); married (9 April 2005) Camilla Parker Bowles (born July 1, 1947)
• HRH Prince William of Wales (born 21 June, 1982)
• HRH Prince Henry of Wales (born 15 September, 1984) (known universally as 'Harry')
• HRH The Princess Anne, Princess Royal (Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise) (born 15 August 1950), married (14 November 1973) and divorced (28 April 1992) Captain Mark Phillips (born September 22, 1948); married (12 December 1992) Rear Admiral Timothy Laurence (born March 1, 1955)
• Peter Phillips (born 15 November 1977)
• Zara Phillips (born 15 May 1981)
• HRH The Prince Andrew, Duke of York (Andrew Albert Christian Edward) (born 19 February 1960), married (23 July 1986) and divorced (30 May 1996) Sarah Ferguson (born October 15, 1959)
• HRH Princess Beatrice of York (born 8 August 1988)
• HRH Princess Eugenie of York (born 23 March 1990)
• HRH The Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex (Edward Anthony Richard Louis) (born 10 March 1964), married (19 June 1999) Sophie Rhys-Jones (born January 20, 1965)
• The Lady Louise Windsor (born 8 November 2003)

Succession