70 FACTS ABOUT THE QUEEN

  1. On 9th September 2015, The Queen became the longest reigning Monarch in British history, surpassing the reign of her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria.
  2. Her Majesty is better travelled than any British Monarch before her.
  3. The Queen has visited over 100 countries as Monarch.
  4. Her Majesty’s first solo public engagement (as Princess Elizabeth) was on 21st April 1942
  5. The Queen has carried out more than 21,000 engagements over the course of her reign.
  6. Her Majesty has given Royal Assent to approximately 4,000 Acts of Parliament.
  7. The Queen has hosted 112 incoming State Visits to the United Kingdom.
  8. Her Majesty is currently Patron of over 500 organisations.
  9. The Queen has sent over 300,000 congratulatory cards to people celebrating their 100th birthdays.
  10. At least 35 countries have issued coinage with the image of The Queen.
  11. Her Majesty has held over 50 ranks and appointments in the British and Commonwealth Armed Services during her lifetime.
  12. The Queen holds the title ‘Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church of England’.
  13. Her Majesty is a committed Christian and Churchgoer and has often spoken of her faith.
  14. The Queen has sat for over 200 official portraits during her reign.
  15. The Royal Collection, held in trust by Her Majesty for her successors and the nation, is estimated to have over a million individual pieces.
  16. Over 180 garden parties have been held at Buckingham Palace since 1952.
  17. There have been 14 Presidents of the United States during Her Majesty’s reign.
  18. The Queen has been served by 14 Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom during her reign.
  19. Her Majesty has owned more than 30 Corgis and Dorgis during her reign.
  20. The Queen travelled on the London Underground for the first time in May 1939 with her governess Marion Crawford and her sister Princess Margaret.
  21. Her Majesty made her first radio broadcast in 1940.
  22. The Queen joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service in 1945.
  23. Her Majesty’s first official overseas visit was in 1947, when she toured South Africa, Southern Rhodesia (modern-day Zimbabwe) and the British Protectorate of Bechuanaland (Botswana).
  24. The Queen’s first military appointment was as Colonel of the Grenadier Guards.
  25. In 1953 Her Majesty made the first Christmas broadcast from overseas, broadcasting live from New Zealand.
  26. The Royal Yacht Britannia was first used by The Queen when she embarked with The Duke of Edinburgh on 1st May 1954 at Tobruk, Libya for the final stage of their Commonwealth Tour.
  27. On 26th March 1976, Her Majesty sent her first email during a visit to the Royal Radar Establishment, Malvern.
  28. In 1986 The Queen became the first British Monarch to visit China.
  29. Her Majesty was the first British Monarch to address the United States House of Congress, on 16th May 1991.
  30. In 1997 The Queen launched Buckingham Palace’s first official website, in 2014 she sent her first tweet and in 2019 published her first Instagram post .
  31. In 2009 Her Majesty witnessed Swan Upping for the first time.
  32. The Queen introduced the Elizabeth Cross in 2009.
  33. Her Majesty made a State Visit to Ireland in 2011, the first time a reigning British Monarch has visited the country since its separation from the United Kingdom.
  34. In 2013 The Queen became the first Monarch to be presented with an Honorary BAFTA award in recognition of a lifetime’s support of British film and television.
  35. Her Majesty and The Duke of Edinburgh celebrated their Platinum Wedding Anniversary in 2017.
  1. To mark the Diamond Jubilee in 2012, the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant was held on 3rd June 2012.
  2. The longest overseas tour that The Queen has undertaken began in Bermuda in November 1953 and ended in Gibraltar in May 1954.
  3. The greatest number of countries that Her Majesty has visited in one trip is 14.
  4. In 1966 The Queen presented England football captain Bobby Moore with the World Cup Trophy.
  5. In September 1966 Her Majesty visited the British Aircraft Corporation’s facilities in Filton, Bristol, and inspected the progress of the Concorde project.
  6. In 1973 The Queen opened Sydney Opera House.
  7. Following Her Majesty’s 90th birthday celebrations in 2016, it was agreed that an Award would be created in her name to recognise emerging British fashion talent.
  8. The Queen has met four Popes on official visits during her reign.
  9. Her Majesty and The Duke of Edinburgh were married on 20th November 1947 in Westminster Abbey.
  10. The Queen wore two crowns on her Coronation Day.
  11. There were more than 2,000 journalists and 500 photographers from 92 nations on the Coronation route in 1953.
  12. Prior to its de-commissioning in 1997, many of Her Majesty’s official tours were undertaken on the Royal Yacht Britannia.
  13. Her Majesty has made a Christmas Broadcast to the Commonwealth every year of her reign except 1969.
  14. The Queen sent a message of congratulations to Apollo 11 astronauts for the first moon landing on the 21st July 1969.
  15. In 2016 Her Majesty and The Duke of Edinburgh sent a message to British astronaut Tim Peake as he joined the International Space Station.
  16. On the evening of the Coronation, The Queen made a radio broadcast in which she stated: “Throughout all my life and with all my heart I shall strive to be worthy of your trust”.
  17. During her reign, Her Majesty has received many gifts including a variety of live animals.
  18. There has been a Trooping the Colour Parade every year of The Queen’s reign, apart from 1955, which was cancelled due to a railway strike.
  19. Windsor Castle, currently Her Majesty’s main residence, is the oldest and largest occupied palace in the world.
  20. The Queen was born at 2.40am on 21st April 1926 at 17 Bruton Street in Mayfair, London.
  21. Her Majesty’s first pony was given to her by her grandfather, King George V. The Shetland pony was called Peggy.
  22. As British passports and driving licences are issued in The Queen’s name, she is not required to have either – a privilege held by her alone.
  23. Her Majesty speaks fluent French .
  24. Almost 70 forest conservation projects across the Commonwealth have joined The Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy initiative since its launch in 2015.
  25. Sir Winston Churchill, Her Majesty’s first Prime Minister, became a Member of Parliament during the reign of The Queen’s great-great grandmother, Queen Victoria.
  26. The Queen (then Princess Elizabeth) became a Girl Guide In 1937 aged 11, learning how to pitch tents, cook on campfires and administer first aid.
  27. In 1969 The Queen was given a black mare, named Burmese, by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
  28. Her Majesty, then 11 year-old Princess Elizabeth, attended her parents’ Coronation at Westminster Abbey in 1937.
  29. The Queen’s Coronation dress was designed by British couturier Sir Norman Hartnell. He submitted nine different designs and Her Majesty accepted the eighth.
  30. Her Majesty’s Coronation ceremony was the first to be broadcast on television.
  31. On 8th May 1945, Victory in Europe Day, The Queen (then Princess Elizabeth) and her sister Princess Margaret, aged 19 and 14 respectively, joined the crowds in London incognito.
  32. The Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust has enabled over 100,000 people to have sight-saving surgery.
  33. Her Majesty has conducted over 650 investitures throughout her reign.
  34. The Queen has awarded the George Cross collectively to just two groups over the course of her reign : officers and families of the Royal Ulster Constabulary for their bravery during the Troubles in Northern Ireland and, most recently, to NHS staff for their work during the Coronavirus pandemic.
  35. As part of the London 2012 Olympics opening ceremony, secret agent James Bond escorted The Queen from Buckingham Palace to the Olympic Stadium by helicopter before they both parachuted into the event.

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