Queen Elizabeth II's life was filled with royal adventure and excitement even before she succeeded her father, King George VI, to the throne in 1952, becoming Britain's longest-reigning queen. As the longest-serving British monarch bid goodbye to the world, here's looking at some lesser-known facts about Queen Elizabeth II.
Queen Elizabeth II's life was filled with royal adventure and excitement even before she succeeded her father, King George VI, to the throne in 1952, becoming Britain's longest-reigning queen.
The majestic nonagenarian enjoyed a drink (or two) while living the high life, from her first encounter with Prince Philip, her true love, at age 8 to learning to drive at 18 while serving in World War II and becoming the only British citizen legally allowed to operate a vehicle without a driver's licence. Prince Philip passed away at age 99 in April 2021.
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She had no passport
At the end of the day, Elizabeth was the Queen of England and was entitled to passport-free travel anywhere in the world. She does not require a passport, despite the fact that everyone in the Royal family does, including her late husband The Duke of Edinburgh. This is because the Queen's name appears on every passport; therefore, it would be absurd for her to go with her own.
She was a trained mechanic
The Queen learnt how to repair truck wheels and maintain vehicle engines among other things after joining the army during World War II.
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She served during World War II
Not only was she the princess who resides in the palace. Queen Elizabeth is the first and only female member of the British royal family to have held a position of military service. Queen joined the Women's Auxiliary Territorial Service during the Second World War at the age of barely 18.
First monarch to send an email
In 1976, Queen Elizabeth II become the first Royal ever to send an e-mail. On March 26, 1976, when Elizabeth visited a telecommunication research centre in England and there, she sent an email using ARPANET.
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She learnt how to fire a gun
Queen learnt to shoot a gun with Winston Churchill's Tommy Gun when she was a teenager as part of her training to combat the Nazis. In the gardens of Buckingham Palace, Queen, 14, and her sister Margaret, 10, learned how to shoot.
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