Queen Elizabeth II: A life in pictures
Queen Elizabeth II lived her life in the spotlight. We look back at her reign, from baby to heir to Britain's longest-reigning monarch.
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Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor was born on 21 April 1926, in a house off Berkeley Square in London. She was the first child of Albert, Duke of York - the second son of George V - and his wife, the former Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon
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In her early years, the throne was not her destiny
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However, she was said to have shown a sense of responsibility from a very young age
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Both Elizabeth and her sister, Margaret Rose, who was born in 1930, were educated at home
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Following the abdication of King Edward VIII in 1936, Elizabeth's father became King George VI and she became heir
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During World War Two, Elizabeth and her sister Margaret were evacuated to Windsor. This picture shows them broadcasting to the nation for Children's Hour on the BBC.
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The young princess briefly joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) towards the end of the war, learning to drive and service a lorry.
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Their first child, Charles (pictured), was born in 1948, followed by a sister, Anne, who arrived in 1950.
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Elizabeth remained very close to her mother throughout her life. They are pictured here in 1951 attending a wedding
.
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In January 1952, Elizabeth and Philip set off on an overseas tour in place of her father, who had been ill. The King died in his sleep just days later.
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Elizabeth returned home immediately. The new Queen was just 25 years old.
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First came the King's funeral. Here Queen Mary, his mother, watches as the body of George VI is brought to Westminster Hall, London, for the lying-in-state. Queen Elizabeth stands behind her grandmother, and the Queen Mother is on the right.
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Then, in June 1953, Elizabeth was crowned at Westminster Abbey.
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Following the coronation, Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh made an appearance on the Buckingham Palace balcony and waved to the cheering crowds.
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Although Britain was still enduring post-war austerity, some commentators described the coronation as the dawn of a new Elizabethan age. Here, Queen Elizabeth II ascends the Grand Staircase at the Opera in Paris, France
.
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In 1957, the Queen made the first of many televised Christmas Day broadcasts to the nation
.
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British society and attitudes to the monarchy were changing and the term "the Monarchy" was gradually replaced by "the Royal Family". The Queen is the object of the neighbours' gaze while visiting the home of Mr and Mrs Eddie Hammond at Crawley New Town, Sussex in 1958..
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Between official engagements Elizabeth spent time with her family - here with her daughter Princess Anne at Frogmore, Windsor Castle.
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In 1966, at Wembley, the Queen presented the Jules Rimet Trophy to England captain Bobby Moore after he led his team to a 4-2 World Cup final victory over West Germany
.
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On 29 October 1966, the Queen visited the Welsh village of Aberfan, eight days after a coal tip landslide engulfed Pantglas Junior School killing 144 people, 116 of them children. The Queen was visibly moved and it remains one of the most emotive moments of her reign
..
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In 1969, the documentary Royal Family was first broadcast. It gave audiences an unprecedented view of a year in the private and public life of the Queen and her family.
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The Queen formally invested her son Prince Charles with the Coronet of the Prince of Wales during a ceremony at Caernarfon Castle. He took on the title when he was nine, but the Queen insisted the ceremony should wait until he fully understood its significance.
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