At a young age, Queen Elizabeth ll also known among many as Lilibet, knew that great power and responsibility lay ahead of her. Despite the challenges of the royal duties as well as being a woman ruling over England, the now 96-year-old Queen of England celebrates 70 years on the throne, after presiding over the fragmented British Empire, helping the country to overcome years of uncertainty and anchoring the royal family’s dramas. Here are some marking events from her long reign and life.
FIRST STEPS INTO THE WORLD OF THE MONARCHY
In the first years of her life, Princess Elizabeth was not destined to reach the throne and hence played a relatively minor role in the royal family, but her faith changed with the death of her grandfather King George V, in 1936. In fact, the one in line of royal succession wasn't Elizabeth's father but rather her uncle, Edward VIII, who abdicated from the throne after taking it for one year to be able to freely live with an American socialite named Wallis Simpson. By abdicating, Elizabeth's father Albert ascended to the throne and thus making the then 10-year-old-Elizabeth the first in line to become Queen. Indeed, it can be affirmed that King George VI always had a special affection for his daughter Elizabeth, once stating "Lilibet is my pride. Margaret is my joy", referring to his daughters, Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret.
CORONATION IN 1953: A MEMORABLE EVENT IN BRITISH HISTORY
Elizabeth became queen in 1952, at age 25, and was 26 at the time of her official coronation. In fact, Elizabeth was already putting her name in the history books of the British monarchy, seeing as her coronation was televised by the BBC - this being the first time that such an event was being televised and thus reached the homes of millions of people, who would remain faithful to the royal family for many decades. On that special day, Elizabeth addressed the nation stating the following: “Although my experience is so short and my task so new, I have in my parents and grandparents an example which I can follow with certainty and with confidence. I thank you all from a full heart.”
FIRST YEARS OF REIGN
Even though Queen Elizabeth II never gave an interview, she found her way to the hearts of millions of people around the globe, through the Christmas and New Year’s address, often mixing words of wisdom and faith with her personal reflections on subjects of the country and her interest. By doing so, she was able to establish a bond with the people, leading to immense admiration and fanaticism among the public.
SPOTLIGHT ON ROYAL FAMILY DRAMAS
Until 1981, the Queen’s journey on the throne seemed to be out of a fairy-tale, as everything went relatively well, not only did she have the support of the nation and a lovely family, but she was also about to see the wedding of her eldest son and heir, Prince Charles, to Diana Spence on July 29, 1981, like 750 million people around the world who watched the event on television. Everyone loved Diana, she was “the people’s princess” and it seemed that she and Charles had everything to have probably the most beautiful marriage in the history of the British monarchy. In contrast to the wonderful scenario that the public had pictured, the couple had a rather troubled marriage, with mutual accusations of infidelity, leading to a lot of media attention, their divorce in 1992, and, according to many conspiracy theorists, to the tragic death of Diana in Paris in 1997. This specific moment shocked the world and caused an uprise in criticism towards the queen, due to an alleged slow response to the tragedy. Addressing the nation days later from the Buckingham Palace, saying that “No one who knew Diana will ever forget her. Millions of others who never met her, but felt they knew her, will remember her. We have all been trying in our different ways to cope.”
Recently, the Queen also had to deal with criticism due to the decision of Prince Harry, who is married to American actress Meghan Markle, of stepping back from their royal duties. Even though there are some other “scandals” in the royal family, in particular with the Queen’s son Andrew, the Queen always remains firm and does not show a sign of weakness or fatigue.
VOYAGE, VOYAGE
Throughout her reign, the queen made more than 90 state visits, which helped her and the country to strengthen its relations with allied countries and countries which had been colonies of the British Empire such as India. Notable is that the Queen enjoyed having contact with the people, thus often breaking the tradition of waving people from afar and going on royal tours to Australia and New Zealand to greet them personally. Overall, the queen has been served by 14 British prime ministers and met with 13 U.S. presidents, while also meeting figures such as the Apollo 11 Astronauts, who had at the time just become the first people to land on the moon. Hence, the queen witnessed incredible moments of history throughout her reign.
LOSING THE LOVE OF HER LIFE
Queen Elizabeth had been married to Philip for 73 years when the Buckingham Palace announced his death last year in April. The funeral was held during the coronavirus pandemic and was attended only by some family members and close friends, due to the restriction. This moment of loss is depicted in a photo taken by Jonathan Brady/AP, who captured the Queen sitting alone in St. George’s Chapel during the funeral of her husband.
PLATINUM JUBILEE
In the past days, parades, parties, horse races, and many more activities and events were held to celebrate the queen’s Platinum Jubilee, which celebrates Queen Elizabeth as the first and only British monarch to reach 70 years on the throne.
IS THE QUEEN THE LONGEST-REIGNING MONARCH IN HISTORY?
According to various newspapers, the British Queen has not achieved that milestone yet, as Johann ll of Liechtenstein ruled for over 70 years and France's Louis XIV ruled for more than 72 years. However, the Queen could surpass this record in 2024, at the age of 98.
WITH GREAT POWER COMES GREAT RESPONSIBILITY
For a long time, the Queen has been a woman of arms. Over the last 70 years, she has been criticized a lot despite the enormous love and affection that the British and people from all over the world have for her. Nonetheless, she has consistently proven to be an ambitious leader, while also being a wife, a mother, a grandmother and a great-grandmother. In these days of celebration, Queen Elizabeth has the world’s spotlight on her and on her long-lasting reign, but also on the fact that women are now more than ever pushing boundaries, breaking records, and speaking up for their beliefs and key values. If there’s something that the Queen of England taught us with her journey and reign until now, it’s that we should always remain true to ourselves, have an appropriate attitude and behavior according to our role in society, make use of our sense of humor sometimes, use our voices and to always remember that with great power comes great responsibility.
Filipa Moreira
08.06.2022
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