Queen Elizabeth II
(1926-2022), Reigned 1952-2022Sitter associated with 972 portraits
Queen Elizabeth II was the longest-serving British monarch in history. Her devotion to the duty and public service was renowned and she ruled through a period of enormous social change and technological transformation. Her coronation in 1953 was the first to be televised and was broadcast internationally and she is the most portrayed person in the world.
Born in London, Princess Elizabeth became heir to the throne in 1936 on the accession of her father George VI. She married Philip Mountbatten in 1947 and their first children, the then Prince Charles and Princess Anne, were born in 1948 and 1950. Elizabeth became Queen in 1952, whilst on an official trip to Kenya, after the death of her father. Her coronation in 1953 was the first to be televised and was broadcast internationally. Her sons, Princes Andrew and Edward, were born in 1960 and 1964. As Queen of the United Kingdom and Head of the Commonwealth, her Silver, Golden, Diamond and Platinum Jubilees were celebrated in 1977, 2002, 2012 and 2022.
Queen Elizabeth II; Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother; King George VI
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, 2 December 1926
NPG P140(8)
Queen Elizabeth II; Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, 5 July 1928
NPG P140(10)
Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother; Queen Elizabeth II; King George VI
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, feigned oval, July 1929
NPG P140(9)
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, 30 July 1929
NPG P140(19)
Queen Elizabeth II; Princess Margaret; Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, 22 June 1931
NPG P140(11)
Princess Margaret; Queen Elizabeth II
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, 1932
NPG P140(14)
Queen Elizabeth II; Princess Margaret
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, 1936
NPG P140(15)
Queen Elizabeth II; King George VI; Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother; Princess Margaret
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, 1938
On display in Room 27 on Floor 2 at the National Portrait Gallery
NPG P140(13)
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, February 1939
NPG P140(20)
Queen Elizabeth II; Princess Margaret
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, 1941
NPG P140(16)
Queen Elizabeth II; Princess Margaret
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, 1941
NPG P140(17)
by Baron Studios
bromide print, 20 November 1947
NPG P1415
by Baron Studios
bromide print, 20 November 1947
NPG P1416
by Cecil Beaton
C-type colour print, 14 December 1948
NPG P1452
Queen Elizabeth II; King Charles III
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, 26 October 1949
NPG P140(23)
Queen Elizabeth II; King Charles III
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, 26 October 1949
NPG P1404
Queen Elizabeth II; Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
by Baron Studios
bromide print, 1949
NPG P1420
Conversation piece at the Royal Lodge, Windsor
by Sir James Gunn
oil on canvas, 1950
On display in Room 28 on Floor 2 at the National Portrait Gallery
NPG 3778
King Charles III; Queen Elizabeth II; Princess Anne; Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
by Baron Studios
bromide print, December 1950
NPG P1421
Queen Elizabeth II; Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
by Yousuf Karsh
bromide print, 1951
NPG P343
Princess Anne; Queen Elizabeth II
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, 1951
NPG P140(24)
Queen Elizabeth II; Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
by Yousuf Karsh
bromide print, 1951
NPG P490(26)
Queen Elizabeth II; Princess Anne
by Marcus Adams
bromide print, August 1951
NPG P1405
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh; Queen Elizabeth II
by Baron Studios
bromide print, 1951
NPG P1422
Queen Elizabeth II; Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
by Baron Studios
bromide print, 1951
NPG P1423
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh; Queen Elizabeth II
by Baron Studios
bromide print, 1951
NPG P1425
by Dorothy Wilding
cream-toned bromide print on tissue mount, 15 April 1952
NPG P870(6)
by Dorothy Wilding
chlorobromide print on tissue and card mount, 26 February 1952
NPG P870(5)
Princess Anne; Queen Elizabeth II; Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh; King Charles III
by Studio Lisa (Lisa Sheridan)
bromide print, 28 September 1952
NPG P1613
Queen Elizabeth II; Princess Anne; King Charles III
by Studio Lisa (Lisa Sheridan)
bromide print, 28 September 1952
NPG P1614
by Studio Lisa (Lisa Sheridan)
bromide print, 28 September 1952
NPG P1615
Princess Anne; Queen Elizabeth II; King Charles III
by Studio Lisa (Lisa Sheridan)
bromide print, 28 September 1952
NPG P1616
Queen Elizabeth II; Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
by Baron Studios
bromide print, 1953
NPG P1431
Queen Elizabeth II; Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
by Baron Studios
bromide print, 1953
NPG P1432
Queen Elizabeth II; Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
by Baron Studios
bromide print, 1953
NPG P1435
by Baron Studios
C-type colour print, November 1953
NPG P1440
Related People
- Prince Andrew, Duke of York (son)
- Princess Anne (daughter)
- Sir David Bowes-Lyon (uncle)
- Hon. Michael Claude Hamilton Bowes-Lyon (uncle)
- King Charles III (son)
- Lady Sarah Frances Elizabeth Chatto (née Armstrong-Jones) (niece)
- Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (husband)
- Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor (King Edward VIII) (uncle)
- Prince Edward Antony Richard Louis, Earl of Wessex (son)
- Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother (mother)
- Lady Mary Frances Elphinstone (née Bowes-Lyon) (aunt)
- King George V (grandfather)
- King George VI (father)
- Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester (uncle)
- Prince Henry, Duke of Sussex (grandson)
- Princess Margaret (sister)
- Queen Mary (grandmother)
- Princess Mary, Countess of Harewood (aunt)
- David Albert Charles Armstrong-Jones, 2nd Earl of Snowdon (nephew)
- (Cecilia) Nina Bowes-Lyon (née Cavendish-Bentinck), Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne (grandmother)
- Claude George Bowes-Lyon, 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne (grandfather)
- Patrick Bowes-Lyon, 15th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne (uncle)
- William, Prince of Wales (grandson)
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