Whether it’s street parties, televised events or more private celebrations, Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee is sure to be an occasion full of noise, colour and patriotism. The extended four-day Bank Holiday weekend will see much of the country come together and pay tribute to Her Majesty’s extraordinary reign.
Royal Jubilees are an occasion to celebrate the life and reign of a monarch. This year will be more special though as no previous monarch has reached the Platinum milestone.
There are very few people still living who will remember the Queen’s coronation. Here is everything you need to know about the history behind this Platinum Jubilee.
Read more: What date is the Jubilee bank holiday and why do we get an extra one?
When did the Queen get crowned?
Queen Elizabeth II succeeded to the throne on 6 February 1952, which happened shortly after the death of her father, King George VI. She was in Kenya when he passed away, which meant that she became the first Sovereign in over 200 years to accede while abroad.
However, she wasn’t crowned until 2 June 1953, 16 months after her accession, in Westminster Abbey, becoming the 39th Sovereign to be crowned there. This was due to it being traditional to allow for an appropriate period of mourning before such festivities can take place.
The service began at 11.15am and lasted almost three hours. The service fell into six parts: the recognition, the oath, the anointing, the investiture (which includes the crowning), the enthronement and the homage. A total of 8,251 guests attended the ceremony.
How old was The Queen when she was crowned?
At the time of her June 1953 coronation, Her Majesty was just 27-years-old. Fast forward to the present day and she is now 96-years old.
She is far from being the youngest ever monarch in British history, which instead goes to Mary Queen of Scots, who was just 6 days old when she acceded the throne after her father's death. King Henry VI was only 9 months old when he succeeded his father Henry V.
How long has Queen Elizabeth II reigned?
The Queen has been on the throne for 70 years, with 2022 marking her 70th year as monarch, hence the Platinum Jubilee celebrations. She officially hit the landmark on 6 February 2022, despite many of the landmark events taking place in June.
Her historic seven decades of service puts her seven years ahead of the second longest-reigning monarch, Queen Victoria, whose reign lasted 63 years. At the other end of the scale, Lady Jane Grey is said to have held the shortest reign, after ruling for just nine days in 1553.
