Queen
Elizabeth II was born Elizabeth Alexandra Mary in 1926. Her father was then the
Duke of York, while her mother was the former Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon. The
young Elizabeth’s father was never expected to become king because he had an elder
brother, Edward, Prince of Wales, who ascended as King Edward VIII in 1936.
However, the new king fell in love with a twice-divorced American, Wallis
Warfield-Simpson. Those days, marrying a divorcee meant social disgrace and the
king was faced with the dilemma of choosing between his duty as head of the
Great Britain and the Commonwealth and marrying the “woman that he loves.” He
abdicated in December 1936, was made Duke of Windsor, and married Mrs. Simpson
the following year.
King George
VI and Queen Elizabeth
The new king
assumed the name George VI and went on to rule Great Britain and the far-flung
British Empire from 1936 until his death in 1952. He and Queen Elizabeth were
popular anti-German figures during World War II that boosted the morale of
their countrymen. After his death, their elder daughter, Elizabeth, succeeded
as Queen Elizabeth II. Her reign ushered in the New Elizabethan II and marked
the disintegration of the British Empire and the development of the British
Commonwealth of Nations. Furthermore, her reign witnessed the gradual decline
of the monarch’s political power, albeit her fairness and wisdom proved better
than any of her prime ministers. In 2002, she celebrated her 50th
year on the throne, followed by her diamond jubilee in 2012.
The British
Royal Family Today
In 1947, she
married Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. He was born a Prince of Greece and Denmark,
although he relinquished that title, as well as his rights to the throne of
Greece and Denmark before he married Elizabeth. Prince Philip is the queen’s
strong supporter in various public and ceremonial functions. He also takes
official and charitable duties of his own in support for the British Royal Family. The couple has four children: Charles, Prince of
Wales; Anne Princess Royal; Albert, Duke of York; and Edward, Earl of Wessex.
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