Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor, born 21 April 1926) is the current Queen of the United Kingdom (1952-), she is the elder daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.
Early life
She was the first child of The Duke and Duchess of York, who later became King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. At birth she stood third in line of succession to the throne after Edward, Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII), and her father, The Duke of York. It was not expected that her father would become King, or that she would become Queen.
Princess Elizabeth's quiet family life came to an end in 1936, when her grandfather, King George V, died. His eldest son came to the throne as King Edward VIII, but, before the end of the year, King Edward VIII had decided to give up the throne in order to marry the woman he loved, Mrs Wallis Simpson.
Upon his abdication, Princess Elizabeth's father acceded to the throne as King George VI, and in 1937, Princess Elizabeth attended her parents' coronation in Westminster Abbey. This put Princess Elizabeth first in line to the throne.
The Princess received home tution at Sandringham and Buckingham Palace during the 1930s, where her tutors included her father and Henry Marten, the Vice-Provost of Eton. She was also instructed in religion by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Now that she had became first in line to throne, Elizabeth started to study constitutional history and law as preparation for her future role as Queen. Elizabeth also learned French from various French and Belgian governesses, this skill has stood The Queen in good stead, as she often has cause to use it when speaking to ambassadors and heads of state from French-speaking countries, and when visiting French-speaking areas of Canada.
In 1940, at the height of the Blitz, the young Princess was moved to the safety of Windsor Castle, where she spent most of the war years.
Marriage and Children
She married Prince Philip Mountbatten of Greece and Denmark on the 20th of November 1947. Prince Charles, now The Prince of Wales, first heir to the throne, was born in 1948, and his sister, Princess Anne, now The Princess Royal, two years later. After Princess Elizabeth became Queen, their third child, Prince Andrew, arrived in 1960 and the fourth, Prince Edward, in 1964.
Death of Father
On Wednesday, 6 February 1952, Princess Elizabeth received the news of her father's death and her own accession to the throne.
Coronation
On 2 June 1953, Elizabeth was crowned Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Canada, Australia, New Zealand and her other realms and territories at Westminster Abbey by the Archbishop of Canterbury, in the traditional coronation ceremony that has been used for at least 1000 years.
Method of Ruling
Since ascending the throne Her Majesty has taken her role as head of the Church of England and Queen seriously. Although she doesn't hold day to day political power, she maintains a continuous check on the power of her elected officials and still maintains most of her powers in reserve.
