Whether you’re just interested in the Royal Family or need to learn about them for a school assignment, this article is packed with interesting and useful info and facts about the Queen of England! (And it was written and fully fact-checked by a lifelong UK resident.)
Queen Elizabeth II was the longest reigning monarch ever. Before her death in 2022 at the age of 96, she was not only Queen of England but also of the entire United Kingdom and numerous Commonwealth countries. Previously, Queen Victoria was the longest serving British monarch.
If you want to read some facts about Queen Elizabeth II, then stay right here! We’ve got all the interesting info you need about the most famous Brit of all time. You can also find facts about other prominent people here.
You can also discover more about the Queen in books, movies and magazines.
Fast fun facts about the queen
The Queen was born on 21st April 1926, in London. She died at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on 8th September 2022. Her funeral was held on Monday 19th September 2022, and the day was declared a bank (public) holiday in the UK.
The Queen had only one sibling, her sister Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon. Queen Elizabeth II had four of her own children – Charles, Anne, Andrew and Edward. She was married to Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, who died the year before her.
Here are some fun and interesting facts about Queen Elizabeth II.
10 facts about Queen Elizabeth II
From why she wasn’t expected to be Queen at all to her beloved pets, here are 10 facts about Queen Elizabeth the Second.
- The Queen only came to the throne at all because her uncle, King Edward VIII, abdicated. This means he chose to give up the throne. He did so because he wanted to marry the American divorcee Wallis Simpson. This meant her father, Prince Albert, became King, and Elizabeth was then next in line to the throne.
- Officially, the Queen’s title was “Elizabeth II, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of her other realms and territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith’. Phew!
- On the Queen’s death certificate, her occupation is listed at ‘Her Majesty the Queen’. Which is both accurate and not a job title anyone else could lay claim to!
- The Queen saw 15 different politicians become Prime Minister (PM) in the UK. The last she saw taking over the role was Liz Truss. With less than seven weeks in the role, she was the shortest serving PM ever. She and the Queen met just two days before Elizabeth II’s death.
- Queen Elizabeth II had two birthdays (lucky lady)! As well as her real one in April, she celebrated her ‘official birthday’ annually in June, during the British summer.
- Her Majesty’s nickname was Lilibet. Prince Harry and his wife Meghan called their daughter Lilibet Diana after the Queen and Prince Harry’s mother respectively.
- The Queen was famous for having corgis. Her dogs numbered more than 30 during her reign. The two remaining corgis are called Sandy and Muick, and they now live at Prince Andrew’s home in Windsor Great Park.
- Elizabeth II was allowed to drive, even though she held no licence. She was the only UK resident permitted to do that!
- The Michelin-starred Hakkasan restaurant in Mayfair, London now serves fine food on the site of the Queen’s birthplace at 17 Bruton Street.
- The Queen’s first ever Instagram post appeared on the Royal Family’s official Instagram account in 2019. It featured a letter to her great-great-grandfather that she was shown at the Science Museum in London.
Queen Elizabeth II early years
The Queen was born in 1926 at 17 Bruton Street, Mayfair, London. A simple street address may not seem like a very grand birthplace for a monarch – but at that point Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor was never expected to become Queen!
The Queen’s father was Prince Albert, the Duke of York. Her mother was Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, who was later known as the Queen Mother. King George VI was the monarch at the time, and his son King Edward VIII took over, for under a year, in 1936. When he abdicated in December 1936, the Queen’s father George VI became King.
This meant the Queen was next in line to the throne. She took over in 1952, after her father died. Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation was at Westminster Abbey in London in 1953. Later that year she and Prince Philip toured the Commonwealth. Their visit to Australia was the first ever by the reigning British monarch.
The Queen and the royal family
This list of Queen Elizabeth facts for kids wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the members of the Royal Family that came after her.
The Queen’s children
King Charles III is the Queen’s first-born child. The next eldest is Princess Anne, then Prince Andrew, then Prince Edward. Anne is known as the Princess Royal, and Andrew the Duke of York. Her youngest, Prince Edward, is the Earl of Wessex.
The Queen’s grandchildren
Eight grandchildren followed when they grew up and got married, including Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips, Lady Louise and James, Viscount Severn. Plus of course Princes William and Harry.
The Queen’s great-grandchildren
The Queen also had 12 great-grandchildren. Some, like George, Charlotte and Louis, have traditional royal names, while others have more modern names. Zara and Mike Tindall’s kids are called Mia, Lucas and Lena, and their father played rugby for England. Including in 2003, when the team won the rugby World Cup after beating Australia in the final.
The Queen’s other great-grandchildren are called Savannah, Isla, Archie, Lilibet (or Lili), August and Sienna. Apart from Lilibet, perhaps, these are names you might see in any modern classroom. Do you know anyone called Archie, Lucas, Savannah, Sienna, Isla, or Mia? Or even August or Lena, which are a little more unusual?
Queen Elizabeth II lifeline
Here are some important dates concerning the Queen of England. These are listed in order from earliest to latest.
- 21st April 1926. The Queen was born in London.
- 10th December 1936. King Edward VIII abdicated.
- 11th December 1936. Prince Albert – the Queen’s father – became King George VI.
- 20th November 1947. Princess Elizabeth married Philip Mountbatten.
- 14th November 1948. The future King, Charles Philip Arthur George, was born.
- 6th February 1952. The Queen took over after her father’s death.
- 2nd June 1953. The Queen’s coronation took place.
- 6th February 1977. The Queen’s Silver Jubilee marked 25 years on the throne.
- 6th February 2002. The Golden Jubilee was held after a 50 year reign.
- 6th February 2012. The 60 year anniversary and Diamond Jubilee.
- 6th February 2022. The first ever Platinum Jubilee was held for a British monarch.
- 8th September 2022. The Queen died at Balmoral, Scotland.
- 19th September 2022. The date of the Queen’s funeral, and a bank holiday in the UK.
- 22nd September 2022. The official National Day of Mourning and a public holiday in Australia.
- 6th May 2023. The coronation of King Charles III. A bank holiday in the UK, on Monday 8th May, marks the occasion.
The death of the Queen
The photo showing the Queen appointing Liz Truss as the UK Prime Minister on 6th September showed her looking frail and elderly, but as she was 96 years old this was to be expected. This took place at Balmoral, instead of Buckingham Palace.
Operation London Bridge
During the morning of 8th September, the British media began to report concerns for the Queen’s health. The news then said that Prince Charles and Camilla were travelling to Balmoral.
At 3.10pm on the same day, the Queen died at Balmoral Castle in Scotland. Her death became public at 6.30pm UK time. The cause listed on the death certificate was ‘old age’.
The news of her death and the funeral plan were known as ‘Operation London Bridge’. This plan had been in place for decades before the Queen’s passing.
Lying-in-State
Between the morning of Monday 19th September and the evening of Wednesday 14th September, The Queen’s Coffin was Lying-in-State. This meant members of the public could queue to pay their respects at Westminster Hall. Over 250,000 people did so.
The Queen’s funeral
The Queen’s funeral took place on Monday 19th September, a public holiday in the UK. The State Funeral began at 11am at Westminster Abbey, and a procession to Windsor followed. She was buried at The King George VI Memorial Chapel at Windsor Castle, with Prince Philip.
Facts about the Queen for kids
We hope you’ve enjoyed these fun and interesting facts about the Queen of England! 70 years is a long time to do any sort of job, let alone one which involved being seen by the public so often.
Whatever you think about the Queen and the Royal Family, she didn’t get to relax during her retirement like other UK and Australian citizens. She was a very popular monarch, and was often known simply as ‘The Queen’ by people from all over the world.
If you want to find more fun facts about people, why not check out our other guides via the links below?
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