Elizabeth II (1926–)

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Elizabeth II (1926–)

Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Name variations: Elizabeth Windsor. Born Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor, April 21, 1926, in London's West End; elder dau. of Albert Frederick Arthur George, 13th duke of York, also known as George VI, king of England (r. 1936–1952), and Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (b. 1900); sister of Princess Margaret Rose (b. 1930); m. Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten, R.N., duke of Edinburgh (son of Prince Andrew of Greece and Princess Alice of Battenberg), Nov 20, 1947; children: Charles, prince of Wales (b. 1948); Princess Anne (b. 1950); Prince Andrew, duke of York (b. 1960); Prince Edward (b. 1964).

Named Heir Presumptive (1936), after abdication of Edward VIII brought her father to the throne as George VI; acceded to the throne (1952), following death of father; hoping to modernize the monarchy, made herself more accessible to the public as early as 1956; is the 42nd sovereign of England since William I the Conqueror, yet only the 6th woman to occupy the English throne in her own right; predecessors were Mary I, Elizabeth I, Mary II, Anne, and Victoria.

See also Sarah Bradford, Elizabeth: A Biography of Britain's Queen (Farrar, 1996); Graham and Heather Fisher Monarch: A Biography of Elizabeth II (Salem House, 1985); and Women in World History.

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Elizabeth II (1926–)

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Elizabeth II (1926–)