[[Image:QueenElizabethII 2003.jpg|right|225px]]
Her Majesty '''Queen Elizabeth II''' (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor, born April 21, 1926) is the reigning monarch and current [[head of state]] (1952-) of the [[United Kingdom]] of [[Great Britain]] and [[Northern Ireland]], and of 15 other [[Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]] realms (see list below), including [[Canada]], [[Australia]], [[New Zealand]] and [[Jamaica]]. She is the elder daughter of King [[George VI]] and the late [[HM Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother|Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother]].
In Britain, she is referred to formally as "Her Majesty the Queen", but is generally called simply "the Queen". Her full title, by virtue of the Royal Titles Act of 1953, is: "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".
==Marriage and Children ==
She married [[Prince Philip|Philip Mountbatten]], [[Duke of Edinburgh]] , on November 20, 1947. Their first child, [[Prince Charles]], now the [[Prince of Wales]], heir apparent to the throne, was born in 1948, and his sister, [[Princess Anne]], (now The [[Princess Royal]]), two years later. After Princess Elizabeth became Queenqueen, their third child, [[Prince Andrew]] (now known as the [[Duke of York]]), arrived in 1960, and the fourth, [[Prince Edward]] (now known as the Earl of Wessex and who will eventually become the Duke of Edinburgh), in 1964.
The Queen has eight grandchildren--[[Prince William]], [[Duke of Cambridge]]; [[Prince Henry]] of Wales; Princess Beatrice of York; Princess Eugenie of York; James Mountbatten-Windsor, Viscount Severn; Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor; Peter Phillips; and Zara Tindall--and five great-grandchildren. ==Death of FatherAccession to the throne and coronation==
On February 6, 1952, Princess Elizabeth, who was on a tour of [[Kenya]] and staying at the Treetops Hotel, received the news of her father's death at Sandringham and her own accession to the throne.
==Coronation==
On June 2, 1953, Elizabeth was crowned Queen of the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland]] and of Canada, Australia, New Zealand and her other realms and territories at [[Westminster Abbey]] by the [[Archbishop of Canterbury]], and took the [[English coronation oath|coronation oath]] in the traditional coronation ceremony that has been used for at least 1000 years.
==Role within the Church of England == Since Queen Elizabeth has taken the throne she has taken the role of "Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church of England". Archbishops and bishops are appointed by the Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister, who considers the names selected by a Church Commission.<ref>[http://www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchUK/QueenandChurch/QueenandtheChurchofEngland.aspx Official Website of the British Monarchy:] Queen and the Church of England</ref> They take an oath of allegiance to The Commonweath Queen on appointment and may not resign without Royal authority. In parliament the Queen's position in the Church of England is represented by a selection of Priests, known as the Lords Spiritual, taking positions in the [[House of Lords]]. In recent times, however, it has been discussed in the [[House of Commons]] that the Lords Spiritual have their positions removed. ==The Commonwealth Realms==
[[image:Australian 50c coins.jpg|thumb|200px|Australian 50c coins showing two different likenesses of Queen Elizabeth II]]
*[[Antigua and Barbuda]]
*[[Papua New Guinea]]
*[[Solomon Islands]]
*[[St. Christopher Kitts and Nevis]]
*[[St. Lucia]]
*[[St. Vincent and the Grenadines]]
*[[Tuvalu]]
==See AlsoReferences==[[British Royal Family]][[Category:British History]]{{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elizabeth 2}}
[[Category:British History]]
[[Category:Current Heads of State]]
[[Category:United Kingdom Monarchs]]
[[Category:Anglicans]]
[[Category:Queens]]
[[Category:People who were Educated at Home]]