Happy Birthday Queen Elizabeth II
Today, in Australia (excluding WA), on 13 June, we celerate the birthday of
Queen Elizabeth II, the Queen of Australia and our Head of State. But what does
this mean to Australians in general, what do we really know about our Queen or
is this holiday just an excuse for a long weekend? And, by the way, today is not
really her birthday.
Here are some facts about Queen Elizabeth II, if not to give you a better
insight into her, at least to give you a leg up at your next trivia
night.
Queen Elizabeth II
- Her full name is Elizabeth Alexandra Mary
- Technically she doesn't have a surname but she is from the House of
Windsor.
- Born on 21 April 1926.
- On that date, in 2011, she turned 85.
- Her father was Prince Albert, Duke of York (later King George VI) and her
mother was Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (who was known as The Queen
Mother on the death of her husband).
- At birth she was known as Her Royal Highness Princess Elizabeth of
York and was 3rd in the line of succession to the throne.
- Elizabeth had a younger sister, Margaret Rose (August 1930 to February
2002).
- She met her future husband, Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, when she
was very young.
- They married, when she was 21, on 20 November 1947 at Westminster
Abbey.
- She has four children, Charles (born 1948), Anne (1950), Andrew (1960) and
Edward (1964).
- She was proclaimed Queen shortly after the death of her father on 6 February
1952 and on the abdication of her uncle Edward, Prince of Wales.
- Her coronation was held on 2 June 1953.
- Along with being the Queen of Australia, she is the constitutional monarch of
15 other independent sovereign states, known as the Commonwealth realms.
- She is currently the second-longest serving British monarch to Queen
Victoria who served for over 63 years.
- The official residence of Queen Elizabeth II is Buckingham Palace.
Her other residences where she sometimes resides are Windsor Castle in
Berkshire, Sandringham House in Norfolk, Balmoral Castle in
Scotland and Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh.
- Queen Elizabeth II currently holds well over 100 Titles &
Honours.
- Australia is one of the few countries in the Commonwealth that grants a
public holiday to celebrate the Queens Birthday. The UK, where the
Queen resides, celebrates her bithday on the first, second, or third Saturday in
June.
- Over the years, it has been claimed, numerous celebraties / high profile people have kinship to Her Highness including, Johnny Depp, Hillary Clinton and Barbara Bush
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