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Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom

Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor), born on 21 April 1926, is Queen of sixteen independent nations known as the Commonwealth Realms. These are 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. By the Statute of Westminster 1931 she holds these positions equally; no one nation takes precedence over any other.

She became Queen of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan and Ceylon on the death of her father, King George VI, on 6 February 1952. As other colonies of the British Commonwealth (now Commonwealth of Nations) attained independence from the UK during her reign she acceded to the newly created thrones as Queen of each respective realm so that throughout her 54 years on the throne she has been Monarch of 32 nations. Elizabeth II has seen a number of her former territories and realms leave this shared relationship and become kingdoms under a different dynasty, or republics. (See Commonwealth Realm — Former Commonwealth Realms.)

Today about 128 million people live in the 16 countries of which she remains head of state.

She also holds the positions of Head of the Commonwealth, Supreme Governor of the Church of England, Lord of Mann and Duke of Lancaster.

She is currently the second-longest-serving head of state in the world, after King Bhumibol of Thailand. Her reign of over half a century has seen ten different Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom and numerous Prime Ministers in the other Commonwealth Realms of which she is or was Head of State.

Early life

Elizabeth was born at 17 Bruton Street in Mayfair, London on 21 April 1926. Her father was The Prince Albert, Duke of York (later King George VI), the second eldest son of King George V and Queen Mary. Her mother was The Duchess of York (nÈe 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.

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 her close family knew her as ‘Lilibet’.

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 Her Royal Highness 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, 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 Prince of Wales, would marry and have children in due course. Had Edward stayed on the throne and produced no heirs (which would have been likely due to Wallis' reproductive issues), Elizabeth would still have become Queen.

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 currently 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.

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 Her Royal Highness The Princess Elizabeth. There was some demand in Wales for her to be created The Princess of Wales but the King was advised that this was the title of the wife of the Prince of Wales and not a title in its own right. Some feel the King missed the opportunity to make an innovation in Royal practice, by re-adopting King Henry VIII's idea of proclaiming his daughter Lady Mary, Princess of Wales in her own right.

Elizabeth 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 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

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 so far only female member of the royal family to actually serve in the military, though other royal women have been given honorary ranks. During the V-E Day celebrations in London, she and her sister dressed in ordinary clothing and slipped into the crowd secretly in order to celebrate with everyone without being recognised.

Elizabeth made her first official visit overseas in 1947, when she accompanied her parents to South Africa. During her visit to Cape Town she and her father were accompanied by Jan Smuts when they went to the top of Table Mountain by cable car. 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.

Marriage and motherhood

Elizabeth married 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

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