Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland celebrates her 63rd anniversary on the throne today, February 6, 2015. At 88, the Queen continues to show sign of excellent health and she might inherit the long life of her mother, also named Elizabeth, who died at the age of 101 in 2002.
However, the longest reigning British monarch was Elizabeth's great-great grandmother, Queen Victoria, who reigned for 63 years, seven months and 28 days. The Queen will surpass Victoria's record, if she will remain on the throne until September 7, 2015.
Trivia about the Queen:
In a surprising twist of fate, Elizabeth's moment in history significantly drew a closer resemblance to Victoria's reign. Like the reign of Victoria, Elizabeth now also has three male heirs in direct succession to the throne. Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, and Prince George of Cambridge.
During Queen Victoria, her male heirs in direct succession to the throne were: Her son, Prince Bertie, the Prince of Wales, who would become Edward VII, Prince George, the Duke of York, who would become George V, and Prince David, who would become shortly as Edward VIII.
Elizabeth is also the second British monarch after King George I who was not in England at the time of accession. She was in Kenya with her husband, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, when her father, King George VI, died from coronory thrombosis, on February 6, 1952. The Queen received her ascension rite at a royal lodge in Kenya. She left England a Princess and returned as Queen.
On the death of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia last January 23, 2015 at the age of 90, Queen Elizabeth II, is now the world's oldest monarch and the current second longest reigning monarch in the world after King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand.
Queen Elizabeth might be the last British monarch to wed a fellow royal (though it's hard to tell what will happen in the future royal marriages). Her husband, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, is royal by birth as the only son of Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark and Princess Alice of Battenberg. He is also a grandson of King George I of Greece and great great grandson of Queen Victoria of England, as with Elizabeth, Philip is related to all royals in Europe. Philip is also the last true blooded European royal who married into the British royal family as of the current time.
The Queen is also Head of State to 16 nations under the Commonwealth Realms including New Zealand, Australia and Canada.
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