Did we all know that there's another monarch who served longer than the Queen?
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
It's only been a few weeks since the Platty Joobs weekend – which included a Platinum Pageant (of which Prince Louis was certainly the star of the show) and the Trooping the Colour – but we're still running on the high of the royal festivities. Over the four day bank holiday weekend, we celebrated the Queen's record-breaking 70th year on the throne, but it recently came to our attention that our Liz isn't actually the longest serving monarch in history. Yep, we were shocked too!
In fact, although the Queen has been on the British throne for 70 years and one-hundred-something days, there is another monarch who served longer. That person is Louis XIV of France, who became king at the age of four and ruled for 72 years and 110 days from 1643 to 1715. However, being pretty much a toddler when he took on the crown, Louis didn't rule personally until 1661 when he was in his twenties.
Queen Elizabeth, however, didn't become the head of the British monarchy until the age of 25 after the shock death of her father on 6 February 1952. Since then, she's surpassed the reign of two long serving royals – including her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria and Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej. But, she still has a few years to go if she is to become the longest serving monarch in history, with May 2024 being the date that'll see her overtake Louis XIV.
Given that she's been on the throne for seventy years, Her Majesty has been winding down on her royal duties in recent months due to her declining health, which included an overnight hospital stay and ongoing mobility issues that have forced her to drop out of several high-profile events at the last minute.
Despite her ill-health, the Queen took to social media to share a heartfelt message with her fans after the Platinum Jubilee. "I have been humbled and deeply touched that so many people have taken to the streets to celebrate my Platinum Jubilee," she said in a rare message posted to the Royal Family’s official Twitter account.
"I thank you most sincerely for your good wishes and for the part you have all played in these happy celebrations," the Monarch wrote at the end of the post, which was signed off with a rare, handwritten signature of her name and initials: Elizabeth R.
You Might Also Like
