Elizabeth II

• Elizabeth Alexandra Mary was born 21 April 1926) is the queen regnant of 16 independent states and their overseas territories and dependencies.

• Though she holds each crown and title separately and equally, and carries out duties in and on behalf of the other states of which she is monarch, Elizabeth is resident in and most directly involved with the United Kingdom, her oldest realm; part of her lineage traces through the royal houses of England, Wessex, and Scotland for over 1500 years.

• She ascended the thrones of seven countries in February 1952, on the death of her father King George VI .

• In addition to the United Kingdom, Elizabeth II is also Queen of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, and Saint Kitts and Nevis, in each of which she is represented by a Governor-General.

• The 16 countries of which she is Queen are known informally and unofficially as Commonwealth realms; their combined population, including dependencies, is over 129 million, and their total land area makes Elizabeth one of only a few monarchs to reign over parts of every continent on earth. In theory her powers are vast; however, in practice (and in accordance with convention ), she rarely intervenes in political matters.

• Elizabeth II also holds a variety of other positions, among them Head of the Commonwealth, Supreme Governor of the Church of England, Duke of Normandy, Lord of Mann, and Paramount Chief of Fiji

• Elizabeth was born at 17 Bruton Street, in Mayfair, London, the first child of Prince Albert, Duke of York, and Elizabeth, Duchess of York, the first granddaughter of King George V and Queen Mary.

• Elizabeth was named after her mother, while her two middle names are those of her paternal great-grandmother, Queen Alexandra, and grandmother, respectively. As a child, her close family called her Lilibet.

•Winston Churchill described her when she was two

as "a character. She has an air of authority

and reflectivenessastonishing in an infant.“

Her cousin, Margaret Rhodes,

described her as "a jolly little girl,

but fundamentally sensible and well-behaved".

Her only sibling was Princess Margaret,

born in 1930. The two princesses

were educated at home under the supervision

of their mother and their governess,

Marion Crawford, who was casually known

as Crawfie.

To the dismay of

the royal family,

Crawford later published

a biography of Elizabeth and

Margaret's childhood years

entitled The Little Princesses,

which describes Elizabeth's

love of horses and dogs,

her orderliness

and responsibility.

• Since 1947, Elizabeth has been married to Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. The couple have four children and eight grandchildren.

•The marriage was not without controversy:

Philip was Greek Orthodox, had no financial standing,

and had sisters who had married Nazi supporters.

Elizabeth's mother was reported,

in later biographies, to have strongly

opposed the union.

•Before the marriage, Philiprenounced his Greek and

Danish titles, and adoptedthe style Lieutenant PhilipMountbatten, he surname adopted by his mother's

family. Just before thewedding, he was created

Duke of Edinburgh and granted the style of His Royal Highness.

• Elizabeth gave birth to her first child, Prince Charles, on 14 November 1948,

• Though the Royal House is named Windsor, it was decreed through a British Order-in-Council in 1960, that those male-line descendants of Elizabeth II and Prince Philip who were not princes and princesses of the United Kingdom should have the personal surname Mountbatten-Windsor. In practice, however, all of their children have used Mountbatten-Windsor as their surname. A second child, Princess Anne was born in 1950.

• Charles Philip Arthur George, whose family name is Windsor, was born in London at Buckingham Palace on Nov. 14, 1948. Unlike previous heirs to the throne, who were educated at the palace by tutors, Prince Charles went to boarding schools. He attended Cheam School in Headley and Gordonstoun School in Scotland, where his father Prince Philip, the duke of Edinburgh, had also studied.

• Charles studied archaeology and anthropology at Trinity College of Cambridge University, receiving a bachelor's degree in 1970—the first ever earned by an heir to the Crown. He took time off to study the Welsh language in preparation for his investiture (ceremonial inauguration) as prince of Wales on July 1, 1969.

• After attending the Royal Air Force College and the Royal Naval College, Charles had a tour of duty in the Royal Navy until 1976. He piloted aircraft and served on ships.

• On July 29, 1981, Charles married Lady Diana Spencer, the daughter of an English earl, in a wedding at St. Paul's Cathedral that was televised worldwide.

• Prince William, their first son and second in line for the throne, was born on June 21, 1982. A second son, Henry (called Harry), was born on Sept. 15, 1984. Charles and Diana announced their separation in 1992 and were divorced in 1996. Diana died in an automobile accident on Aug. 31, 1997.

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Diana, Princess of Wales

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Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles