Queen Elizabeth II has died aged 96. Her Majesty reigned for 70 years, celebrating her Platinum Jubilee earlier this year. Marking seventy years since Queen Elizabeth II’s ascension to the throne and a return to normality after two years of restrictions, the festivities, which took place over the long bank holiday weekend, were attended by 22,000 spectators and a further 11.2 million watched it on TV.To quote Her Majesty herself – ‘[it] had to be seen to be believed’.
It’s safe to say that, whether you’re a fan of the royal family or not, most people have a little soft spot for the Queen.
At 96 years old, The Queen was limited in which events she could attend in person – although did make the all important balcony appearance and popped up in hologram form taking a ride in the 260-year-old Gold State Coach – but let everyone know she had been ‘inspired by the kindness, joy, and kinship that has been so evident in recent days’ in an open letter published on the official royal website. And hey, even if we didn’t get many close ups of the main woman herself, the fashion moments from the rest of the family very nearly made up for it.
The Queen’s Early Life
As any Royalist or history buff will know, Elizabeth was never born to be Queen. Her father was King George V’s second son, and it was her uncle, Edward, who was next in line to the throne, meaning it would have been Edward’s descendants to take up the Royal lineage. But Edward famously abdicated from the role of King, and his younger brother George would go on to become King George IV. George famously had a severe stutter and struggled with the many public speaking engagements the position required, but he served as reigning monarch until his death from lung cancer at the age of 56 in February 1952.
Meanwhile, a then young Princess Elizabeth was on a royal tour in Kenya with her husband Prince Philip when she was informed that a father had died and that she was now Queen, at aged just 25. Her official coronation, where she wore a gown by court couturier Norman Hartnell,took place in June of 1953.
During her early years as a Princess, Elizabeth joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service where she trained as a driver and mechanic, rising to the rank of Junior Commander before she took the throne. She was famously close with her mum, dad, and sister, and of course her many dogs, who are all said to be descended by a corgi named Susan she received as a gift for her 18th birthday.
The Queen and Prince Philip
Though 2022 was undoubtedly a year of celebration for the Queen, it was still tinged with sadness following the death of her husband Prince Philip the previous year. According to royal biographer A.N. Wilson, the young Elizabeth ‘made it quite clear from the age of about 14 that she was in love with Prince Philip’. It wasn’t until Elizabeth was 18 that romance begun to blossom, but it’s been reported that she was advised against pursuing a relationship with him because of his ‘legendary’ sense of humour.
‘The Queen is a very reserved, diligent person. He isn’t,’ wrote Wilson. ‘He was a naval officer and he was also quite funny.’
They announced their engagement in June 1947, after being ‘secretly engaged’ for a year prior, and married that November.
The Queen and Her Family
The world has always been fascinated with the royal family’s home life, but according to the Queen herself, it’s no different to anyone else’s.
‘Like all the best families,[the Royal Family] have our share of eccentricities, of impetuous and wayward youngsters and of family disagreements,’ she once said.
We’ll take that with a pinch of salt – we didn’t all grow up with stables and boarding school educations, after all – but we can totally relate to the disagreements bit. The Queen had four children – Charles, Anne, Andrew and Edward – and eight grandchildren: William, Harry, Zara, Peter, Beatrice, Eugenie, Louise and James.
She’s also got twelve great grandchildren. They are (deep breath): George, Charlotte, Louis, Archie, Lillibet, Savanah, Isla, Sienna, Mia, Lena, and newest arrivals August, son of Beatrice and her husband Jack Brooksbank, and Lucas, who’s the son of Zara and Mike Tindall and is 24th in line to the throne.
If you really want an insight into the family dynamics of one of the most famous clans on the planet – and let’s be honest, who doesn’t? – the best place to get it is from their many iconic balcony moments.
The Queen As A Style ICON
Over her seven decades on the throne, Her Madge has earned her stripes a bona fide style icon. From her statement lip (her favourite lipstick is by a well-loved highstreet brand and she’s reportedly a fan of other similarly affordable products, which she applies herself 364 days of the year) to hertrademark handbags and eye-popping co-ord sets she famously wears so people who have come to see her can pick her out in the crowd, The Queen created a look all her own and we the public love her for it.
And while you might not be quite ready to abandon your mom jeans in favour of twinsets and pearls, there’s a certain knack to dressing like the Queen that we can all learn a thing or two from; the only thing you might be missing is a jewel-encrusted tiara (and we don’t recommend robbing the Tower of London to get at them, BTW).
The Queen And Her Celebrity Friends
While the Monarch and, say, Lady Gaga might not seem like they’re on precisely the same wavelength, there’s been unnumerable times the Royal and Celebrity worlds have crossed over.
In fact, is basically a given that if you’ve made it to the top of your game in sport, music, or really any field, a meeting with the Queen is imminent, either to receive a coveted OBE or MBE or just for a quaint photo op. Strict protocol is in place (and if you’re ever presented with the opportunity to meet a monarch, you can practise beforehand with this handy guide) and while not everyone bothers to observe them to intensely awkward effect, for the most part, meeting the Queen looks like a thoroughly pleasant experience.
In 1956, Queen Elizabethmet Marylin Monroe, and five years later shook hands with an equally glamorous American icon, [Jackie Kennedy {href='https://graziadaily.co.uk/life/real-life/the-queen-and-jackie-kennedy/' target='_blank' rel='noreferrer noopener'}).
In more recent years she’s had a chinwag with everyone from David Beckham to The Spice Girls, JLo, Miley Cyrus, Kate Winslet, Adele… the list really does go on.
The Queen’s Death
When Queen Elizabeth was crowned nearly seventy years ago, she vowed to serve the country until the day she died.
'I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong,’ she famously said – and it’s a promise she kept up until her death in September 2022.
In the last couple of years of her reign the Queen has opted out of many of her longstanding official engagements, including last year’s cenotaph ceremony on Remembrance Sunday, and only making a brief appearance at her own Jubilee celebrations this summer. Editor of The Times Sunday Supplement Martin Ivens said last year, ‘”Long live the Queen" was the proclamation made following her accession to the throne, but ever since her husband’s death her subjects are beginning to grasp that her life has a terminus’ and that ‘the UK must begin to think the unthinkable: of life without her.’
‘Operation London Bridge’ is the codename given to the procedures in the event of the Queen’s death, with a leaked document stating ‘the full extent of the preparations undertaken by the Royal Family and the Cabinet Office’s BRIDGES Secretariat’ in ‘granular detail’.
After a particularly well reported spell of bad health this year,plenty of people were googling whether we’ll get twelve days off work to mourn the Queen’s death, but only the day of her funeral, twelve days after her passing, will be treated as a national holiday. The Department for Education previously said it ‘will issue advice in due course to all schools should [the Queen die].'