British Queen (Elizabeth the Second) & royal palaces/events in UK

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The British royal family


Sections:	Introduction
	The Royal Family
	Royal palaces and ceremonies
	Further information
	Links

Related pages:	England ; Scotland ; Wales ; Ireland

INTRODUCTION

This page introduces the members of the British royal family, as well as their palaces and royal ceremonies.

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THE ROYAL FAMILY

The Queen, Duke of Edinburgh and Prince Charles
arrive at Royal Ascot

Catherine and William appear on the balcony of
Buckingham Palace after their wedding

The kings and queens of the UK in recent history have been:
Queen Victoria (1837-1901); King Edward the Seventh (1901-1910); King George the Fifth (1910-1936); King Edward the Eighth (1936); King George the Sixth (1936-1952); Queen Elizabeth the Second (1952-present).

Queen Elizabeth the Second was born in 1926. She is the current head of state for the United Kingdom, and also head of the Commonwealth, a group of countries which used to be part of the former British Empire. She will celebrate her Diamond Jubilee (60 years as Queen) in 2012. She is a member of a royal family line known as the House of Windsor.

Both the Queen's sister (Princess Margaret) and her mother (known as the Queen Mother) died in 2002. The Queen is married to Prince Philip, whose title is the Duke of Edinburgh (not King).

The Queen's eldest son is Prince Charles (born in 1948). His official title is the Prince of Wales. If he becomes king, he will be known as King Charles the Third. He was married to Princess Diana, but they divorced in 1996. Diana died in a car accident in Paris in 1997. Prince Charles' partner, Camilla, married him in a civil ceremony in Windsor in 2005. Camilla is now known as the Duchess of Cornwall, and when Prince Charles becomes King she has asked to be known as the Princess Consort (not the Queen Consort).

Charles has two sons: Prince William (born in 1982) and Prince Harry (born in 1984). William married Kate Middleton (more formally known as Catherine) on 29 April 2011 in Westminster Abbey, after which the couple are called the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. If Prince William becomes king he will be known as King William the Fifth. The Queen has three other children. Princess Anne has the title of Princess Royal. Prince Andrew is the Duke of York. Prince Edward is the Earl of Wessex.

	Elizabeth Author: Jennie Bond Publisher: Carlton Books Ltd Date: April 2006		Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II: 50 Years Publisher: Pitkin Guides Date: December 2001
	Prince Charles: a Biography Author: Anthony Holden Publisher: Bantam Press Date: September 1998		Camilla: Her True Story Author: Caroline Graham Publisher: Blake Publishing Ltd Date: June 2003
	Diana: Her True Story - In Her Own Words Author: Andrew Morton Publisher: Michael O'Mara Books Date: August 2003		A Royal Duty Author: Paul Burrell Publisher: Michael Joseph Date: October 2003
	William & Harry: A Portrait of Two Princes Author: Ingrid Seward Publisher: Arcade Publishing Date: June 2003		How To Be A Prince: Prince William At 21 (video) Studio: BBC Worldwide Publishing Date: June 2003
	William: the People's Prince: His Life in Pictures Author: Robin Nunn Publisher: Hayden Publishing Date: November 2003		Prince Harry: the Biography Author: Mark Saunders Publisher: Blake Publishing Ltd Date: November 2002

ROYAL PALACES & CEREMONIES

Buckingham Palace

The main home of the Queen is at Buckingham Palace in London. She spends April and the second week of June and many of her private weekends at Windsor Castle (see: Travel/Tours/England/Windsor). Other official residences are at Sandringham in Norfolk and at Balmoral in Scotland.

The Queen is protected by soldiers from the Household Division. The soldiers on foot wear a black bearskin hat. They are known as the Foot Guards: there are 5 different types (Grenadier Guards, Coldstream Guards, Welsh Guards, Scots Guards and Irish Guards). The soldiers on horses wear a pointed helmet and are known as the Household Cavalry: the Life Guards wear white in their helmet, and the Blues and Royals wear red. There is a regular ceremony at Buckingham Palace known as the Changing of the Guards. The Yeomen of the Guard can be seen at the Tower of London: their duties are mainly ceremonial.

Statue of Queen Victoria,
Windsor Castle

Windsor Castle
(Windsor)

Entrance to
Hampton Court Palace

The Queen attends many events and official occasions both in the UK and abroad, and supports the work of many charities. Each June there is a ceremony to celebrate her "official" birthday (not her real birthday), known as Trooping the Colour (see: Ideas/Album/TroopingTheColour). Soon after this there is the Garter Day ceremony in Windsor Castle (see: Ideas/Album/GarterDay): a tradition dating back to 1348. In November she takes part in the ceremony which pays tribute to those who died in wars on Remembrance Sunday (see: Ideas/Album/RemembranceSunday). Another official duty is the State Opening of Parliament in October or November (see: Ideas/Album/StateOpeningOfParliament). In May and June she likes to attend the horse racing events Derby Day (see: Ideas/Album/DerbyDay) and Royal Ascot (see: Ideas/Album/RoyalAscot).

Foot Guards,
Buckingham Palace

Guard
box

Household Cavalry:
Blues & Royals

Yeomen of the Guard,
Tower of London

	Buckingham Palace Author: Olwen Hedley Publisher: Pitkin Guides Date: December 1990		The Guards Authors: Peter Simkin, Barry Gibbs Publisher: Pitkin Guides Date: December 1990
	Windsor Castle Author: Sir Robin Mackworth-Young Publisher: Pitkin Guides Date: December 1993		Royal Britain Publisher: Collins Date: March 2002

FURTHER INFORMATION

The Queen's official website: http://www.royal.gov.uk.
Official YouTube channel for the British monarchy: http://www.youtube.com/theroyalchannel
Prince Charles' official website: http://www.princeofwales.gov.uk.
The royal guards: http://www.army.mod.uk/ceremonialandheritage/guards_index.htm.
Ceremonial events calendar: http://www.theguardsmuseum.com/events.htm

To plan a visit to Windsor Castle, see: Travel/Tours/England/Windsor

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LINKS

Remembrance Sunday: Ideas/Album/RemembranceSunday
Trooping the Colour: Ideas/Album/TroopingTheColour
Garter Day: Ideas/Album/GarterDay
Royal Ascot: Ideas/Album/RoyalAscot
State Opening of Parliament: Ideas/Album/StateOpeningOfParliament

Buckingham Palace: Travel/Tours/London/BuckinghamPalace
Windsor Castle: Travel/Tours/England/Windsor
Hampton Court Palace: Travel/Tours/England/HamptonCourt

British history: Britain/History

Home page: Home

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