Queen Elizabeth II, who ruled Britain for 70 years, has passed away at the age of 96. She was the country’s longest-reigning monarch. Here are some little-known facts about her.
- She is fluent in French and frequently uses it while speaking to crowds and foreign dignitaries. She doesn’t need a translator.
- Since William the Conqueror’s coronation, Queen Elizabeth II has served as the country’s 40th ruler.
- In November 2010, the Queen created a page on Facebook called the British Monarchy, which includes news, images, videos, and speeches on the monarchy. It is impossible to prod the royal family, though. In July 2009, she joined Twitter, where staff members at Buckingham Palace tweeted regular updates. The royals themselves don’t tweet. The only other Twitter account the page follows is that of Clarence House, the Prince of Wales’s official residence.
- Only the Queen is permitted to operate her state vehicle without a license or number plate in Great Britain.
- The Queen has been given numerous unique gifts throughout her reign, including many live animals. The London Zoo has been entrusted with the care of the more uncommon ones, including two black beavers from Canada, jaguars, and sloths from Brazil. Additionally, there have been gifts of 15 lb. of candy, pineapples, eggs, a box of snail shells, and a forest of maple trees. 7 kg of prawns.
- Although her official birthday is celebrated in June, her actual birthday is April 21.
- When Elizabeth enlisted in the British army’s women’s division in 1945, she also began her driving lessons. She and the daughter of Winston Churchill were both a part of the organization known as the Auxiliary Territorial Service.
- She joined the Girl Guides, a branch of the Scouts for girls, in 1937. In 1943, she joined the Sea Rangers, a group of Girl Guides that specialized in sailing.
- She rode the London Underground for the first time as Princess Elizabeth in May 1939, going with her governess Marion Crawford and her sister Princess Margaret.
- The Queen visited China for the first time as a British monarch in 1986.
- When one of Elizabeth’s corgis mated with Princess Margaret’s dachshund named Pipkin, they created the new breed of dog known as the dorgi. Cider, Berry, Candy, and Vulcan are the four dorgis that Elizabeth now owns. The Queen raises and trains Labradors and Cocker Spaniels at Sandringham House in addition to corgis and dorgis. In 1911, a unique black Labrador variety known as the Sandringham was established.
- She has a strong passion for horses and racing. When she was 4 years old, her grandpa King George V gave her her first pony, a Shetland named Peggy. At Balmoral, Windsor, and Sandringham, Elizabeth keeps riding. The Queen is interested in horse breeding as well. Almost all of Britain’s important races over the past 200 years have been won by horses that were bred at the royal studs. Each season, Elizabeth trains roughly 25 horses.
- The wedding of the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh took place at Westminster Abbey on November 20, 1947. Her wedding gown was created by Sir Norman Hartnell and made with silk from Chinese silkworms at Lullingstone Castle at Winterthur Silks Limited in Dunfermline’s Canmore facility.
- She reportedly completed a car maintenance course during World War II and is the only British monarch in history who has received the required training to change a spark plug.
- The Sun tabloid was sued by the Queen for publishing the complete text of her 1992 broadcast two days prior to its broadcast. Later, she accepted an apology and a £200,000 charitable donation.
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