Information about Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Elizabeth II (21 April 1926 - 8 September 2022)

Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary) was the Queen of 16 of the 53 member states in the Commonwealth of Nations, Head of the Commonwealth, and Supreme Governor of the Church of England.

Upon her accession on 6 February 1952, Elizabeth became Head of the Commonwealth and queen regnant of seven independent Commonwealth countries: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, and Ceylon. Her coronation service the following year was the first to be televised. From 1956 to 1992, the number of her realms varied as territories gained independence and some realms became republics. Today, in addition to the first four of the aforementioned countries, Elizabeth is Queen of Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, and Saint Kitts and Nevis. She is the world's oldest reigning monarch as well as Britain's longest-lived. If still reigning on 10 September 2015, she will have become the longest-reigning British head of state and the longest-reigning female monarch in history, surpassing Queen Victoria.

Elizabeth was born in London as the elder daughter of the Duke and Duchess of York, later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, and educated privately at home. Her father acceded to the throne on the abdication of his brother Edward VIII in 1936, from which time she was the heir presumptive. She began to undertake public duties during the Second World War, in which she served in the Auxiliary Territorial Service. In 1947, she married Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, with whom she had four children: Charles (who became King Charles III after her death), Anne, Andrew, and Edward.

Elizabeth's many historic visits and meetings include a state visit to the Republic of Ireland, the first state visit of an Irish president to the United Kingdom, and reciprocal visits to and from the Pope. She saw major constitutional changes, such as devolution in the United Kingdom, Canadian patriation, and the decolonisation of Africa. She also reigned through various wars and conflicts involving many of her realms.

In her capacity as queen of the United Kingdom, Elizabeth II was styled, "Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith". The title "Defender of the Faith" reflects the Sovereign's position as the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, who is thus formally superior to the Archbishop of Canterbury. The original Latin phrase - Fidei Defensor - is referred to on all current British (and some Commonwealth) coins by the abbreviations F D or FID DEF. This reference was first added to British coins in 1714, during the reign of King George I. The decision of the Royal Mint to omit reference to the phrase (and other parts of the monarch's style) from the pre-decimal British "Godless Florin" in 1849, caused such a scandal that the coin was replaced.

Queen Elizabeth II reigned in...
Reigned asIn CountryFromToCoins Issued
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Pakistan, Dominion of Pakistan, Dominion of 6 February 1952 23 March 1956
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Cyprus, British Cyprus, British 6 February 1952 16 August 1960
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of South Africa South Africa 6 February 1952 31 May 1961
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Kenya Colony Kenya Colony 6 February 1952 12 December 1963
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of British West Africa British West Africa 6 February 1952 5 October 1965 7
Queen Elizabeth II East African Currency Board 6 February 1952 1966
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Ceylon, British Ceylon, British 6 February 1952 22 May 1972
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Bahamas, British Crown Colony Bahamas, British Crown Colony 6 February 1952 10 July 1973
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of New Guinea, Territory of New Guinea, Territory of 6 February 1952 15 September 1975
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of British Honduras British Honduras 6 February 1952 21 September 1981 57
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Fiji Fiji 6 February 1952 6 October 1987 130
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Hong Kong, British Hong Kong, British 6 February 1952 30 June 1997
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Alderney Alderney 6 February 1952 8 September 2022 45
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Ascension Island Ascension Island 6 February 1952 8 September 2022 4
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Bermuda Bermuda 6 February 1952 8 September 2022 3
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Canada Canada 6 February 1952 8 September 2022 284
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Falkland Islands Falkland Islands 6 February 1952 8 September 2022 5
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Gibraltar Gibraltar 6 February 1952 8 September 2022 67
Queen Elizabeth II, Lord of Mann Flag of Isle of Man Isle of Man 6 February 1952 8 September 2022 240
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Saint Helena Saint Helena 6 February 1952 8 September 2022 203
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Tristan da Cunha Tristan da Cunha 6 February 1952 8 September 2022 1
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of United Kingdom United Kingdom 6 February 1952 8 September 2022 2,615
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Australia Australia 6 February 1952 9 September 2022 2,685
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of New Zealand New Zealand 6 February 1952 9 September 2022 554
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Tokelau Tokelau 6 February 1952 9 September 2022 216
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Ghana Ghana 6 March 1957 1 July 1960
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Nigeria Nigeria 1 October 1960 1 October 1963 8
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Sierra Leone Sierra Leone 27 April 1961 19 April 1971
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Tanganyika Tanganyika 9 December 1961 9 December 1962
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Montserrat Montserrat 31 May 1962 8 September 2022 10
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Cayman Islands Cayman Islands 6 August 1962 8 September 2022 11
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Jamaica Jamaica 6 August 1962 8 September 2022 2
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago 31 August 1962 1 August 1976
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Uganda Uganda 9 October 1962 9 October 1963
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Kenya Kenya 12 December 1963 12 December 1964
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Malawi Malawi 6 July 1964 6 July 1966
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Malta Malta 21 September 1964 1 July 1974
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Gambia Gambia 18 February 1965 24 April 1970
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Cook Islands Cook Islands 4 August 1965 9 September 2022 968
Queen Elizabeth II (unrecognised) Flag of Rhodesia Rhodesia 11 November 1965 2 March 1975
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Guyana Guyana 26 May 1966 23 February 1970
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Barbados Barbados 30 November 1966 30 November 2021 44
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of British Virgin Islands British Virgin Islands 23 March 1967 8 September 2022 25
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Mauritius Mauritius 12 March 1968 12 March 1992 2
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Anguilla Anguilla 18 March 1969 8 September 2022 11
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Bahamas Bahamas 10 July 1973 8 September 2022 224
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Grenada Grenada 7 February 1974 8 September 2022 10
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Niue Niue 19 October 1974 9 September 2022 3,018
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea 16 September 1975 9 September 2022 11
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Solomon Islands Solomon Islands 7 July 1978 9 September 2022 255
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Tuvalu Tuvalu 1 October 1978 9 September 2022 550
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Saint Lucia Saint Lucia 22 February 1979 8 September 2022 10
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 27 October 1979 8 September 2022 10
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Belize Belize 21 September 1981 8 September 2022
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Antigua and Barbuda Antigua and Barbuda 1 November 1981 8 September 2022 10
Queen Elizabeth II Flag of Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Kitts and Nevis 19 September 1983 8 September 2022 10
Queen Elizabeth II: Legends on Coins
LegendUsed FromUsed ToCoins
ELIZABETH II DEI GRA: BRITT: OMN: REGINA F: D: 1953 1953 12
+ ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA BRITT: OMN: REGINA 1953 1953 5
ELIZABETH · II · DEI · GRATIA · BRITT OMN · REGINA · FIDEI · DEFENSOR 1953 1953 1
+ ELIZABETH · II · DEI · GRATIA · REGINA 1953 1970 85
QUEEN ELIZABETH THE SECOND 1953 1973 186
+ ELIZABETH · II · DEI · GRATIA · REGINA · F : D : 1954 383
ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA REGINA F · D · [year] 1965 1965 1
ELIZABETH II AUSTRALIA [year] 1966 763
ELIZABETH II BAHAMA ISLANDS 1966 1970 31
ELIZABETH II NEW ZEALAND [year] 1967 1998 218
ELIZABETH · II · D · G · REG · F · D · [year] 1968 2015 409
ELIZABETH II FIJI [year] 1969 2010 185
ELIZABETH THE SECOND 1970 2
ISLE OF MAN ELIZABETH II 1970 4
COMMONWEALTH OF THE BAHAMA ISLANDS ELIZABETH II 1971 1973 27
ELIZABETH II D · G · REG · F · D · 1972 2008 32
ELIZABETH · II · DEI · GRATIA · REGINA · F : D : 1974 2003 33
ELIZABETH II QUEEN OF NEW ZEALAND [year] 1977 1982 6
ELIZABETH II · SOLOMON ISLANDS [year] 1977 122
ELIZABETH II · ASCENSION ISLAND 1978 4
ELIZABETH · II · DEI · GRA · REG · F · D 1985 2007 46
ELIZABETH II COOK ISLANDS 1988 336
ELIZABETH · II · DEI · GRA · REG · FID · DEF · 1989 2015 38
ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA REGINA F · D · [value] 1997 1998 48
ELIZABETH II · D · G · REG · FID · DEF · [value] 1997 256
ELIZABETH II NIUE 1997 1,007
ELIZABETH II AUSTRALIA [year] [value] 1998 667
ELIZABETH · II · DEI · GRA REGINA · FID · DEF · 1998 131
NEW ZEALAND ELIZABETH II [year] 1999 260
ELIZABETH II CANADA D · G · REGINA [value] 2000 1
ELIZABETH II · D · G · REG · F · D · [value] · 2002 620
ELIZABETH II NIUE ISLAND 2006 540
QUEEN ELIZABETH II TUVALU 2006 2023 345
ELIZABETH II · D · G · REG · FID · DEF · [value] [year] · 2007 3
FALKLAND ISLANDS QUEEN ELIZABETH II 2007 5
ELIZABETH · II · D · G · REG · FID · DEF · [year] · 2009 3
EASTERN CARIBBEAN CENTRAL BANK [value] QUEEN ELIZABETH II 2010 80
ELIZABETH II QUEEN OF GIBRALTAR 2010 3
ELIZABETH II · D · G · REG · F · D · [value] · [year] · 2011 463
ELIZABETH II AUSTRALIA [value] 2012 703
ELIZABETH II TUVALU 2014 2014 3
ELIZABETH II · DEI · GRA · REG · F · D · [value] · [year] · 2015 60
ELIZABETH II · DEI · GRA · REG · FID · DEF · [year] · 2015 82
[year] · ELIZABETH II · D · G · REG · F · D 2016 9
ELIZABETH II · CAYMAN ISLANDS · [year] 2017 9
H.M. QUEEN ELIZABETH II TRISTAN DA CUNHA 2018 1
QUEEN ELIZABETH II NIUE ISLAND 2018 14
ELIZABETH II · ALDERNEY C. I. 2019 11
ELIZABETH · II · DEI · GRA REGINA · ALDERNEY C. I. 2019 6
ELIZABETH II · DEI · GRA · REGINA · F · D · ST. HELENA 2019 21
ELIZABETH II · D · G · REGINA · F · D · ST. HELENA 2020 92
ELIZABETH II · EAST CARIBBEAN STATES 2020 1
QUEEN ELIZABETH II · ISLE OF MAN · [year] · 2020 2022 27
QUEEN ELIZABETH II · SAINT HELENA 2020 2022 68
Elizabeth dei gratia britanniar. reg: f:d Alderney c.i. 2021 19
ELIZABETH II 2021 1
ELIZABETH II AUSTRALIA 2022 6
ELIZABETH II · D · G · REG · F · D · ST. HELENA 2022 20
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