The reign of Queen Elizabeth II

Princess Elizabeth, left, is taken for a ride on the grounds of Windsor Castle in 1927. (Associated Press)

Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary is born in a townhouse off London’s Berkeley Square, the first child of Prince Albert, the Duke of York, and grandchild of the reigning King George V.

The ailing George V dies, and his son, David, is proclaimed King Edward VIII.

The duke and duchess of Windsor in Cap d'Antibes, France, where they celebrated New Year's in 1939. (Associated Press)

King Edward VIII issues an Instrument of Abdication, which is given legal effect the following day, so that he can marry an American divorcee, Wallis Simpson. His younger brother, Elizabeth’s father, succeeds him as George VI.

Elizabeth makes her first public speech at age 14, on the BBC Children’s Hour, to reassure children who had been separated from their parents during the Nazi blitz of London.

After turning 18, Elizabeth joins the Auxiliary Territorial Service to do her part in the war effort, learning to drive and maintain trucks.

From left to right, Princess Elizabeth, Queen Elizabeth, King George and Princess Margaret stand on a balcony at Buckingham Palace on May 8, 1945, and wave to Londoners celebrating the announcement of Germany's unconditional surrender. (Associated Press)

On V-E Day, the king gives permission to his daughters to join crowds of revelers in the streets of London. “I remember we were terrified of being recognized, so I pulled my uniform cap well down over my eyes,” Elizabeth recalled later in a rare interview. “I remember lines of unknown people linking arms and walking down Whitehall, all of us just swept along on a tide of happiness and relief.”

Elizabeth marries Prince Philip Mountbatten of Greece and Denmark, newly named the Duke of Edinburgh, at Westminster Abbey.

Princess Elizabeth holds her son, Prince Charles, in a portrait at Buckingham Palace following his christening Dec. 15, 1948. With Elizabeth are her grandmother, Queen Mary, and father, King George VI. (Associated Press)

Elizabeth’s first child, Charles Philip Arthur George, the future Prince of Wales, is born.

Prince Charles and Princess Anne with their parents, Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh, on the balcony of Buckingham Palace on May 15, 1954. (Press Association)

Elizabeth’s second child and only daughter, Anne, the future Princess Royal, is born.

Elizabeth and Philip are on an official visit to Kenya when George VI dies in his sleep in England. At 25, she is now queen.

Elizabeth is crowned at a ceremony at Westminster Abbey attended by more than 7,000 people. Hundreds of thousands more line the streets to catch a glimpse of their queen in her horse-drawn coach, and millions watch the first-ever broadcast of a British coronation on television.

Elizabeth and Philip arrive in Bermuda at the start of a Commonwealth tour, the first of many during her long reign. The tour will last nearly six months and include stops in Jamaica, Fiji, Tonga, New Zealand, Australia, Ceylon, Uganda, Malta and Gibraltar.

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip with their children, from left, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Charles at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on Sept. 8, 1960. (AFP / Getty Images)

Elizabeth’s third child, Prince Andrew, is born.

From left to right, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Edward, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, Prince Charles and the Duke of Edinburgh celebrate the queen's birthday at Frogmore House, Windsor, on April 21, 1965. (Press Association)

Elizabeth’s fourth child, Prince Edward, is born.

Queen Elizabeth II on the balcony of the Rathaus Schoneberg, the West Berlin city hall, in 1965. (ullstein bild / Getty Images)

Elizabeth begins a historic visit to West Germany, the first to the region by a British monarch in 52 years.

Queen Elizabeth II chats with Emperor Hirohito of Japan at Victoria Station at the start of his four-day state visit to London on Oct. 5, 1971. On the left are the queen's sister, Princess Margaret, and her husband, Antony Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon. (Getty Images)

Elizabeth receives Emperor Hirohito of Japan at Buckingham Palace at the start of his first state visit to Britain since World War II.

Elizabeth celebrates her Silver Jubilee, marking 25 years on the throne.

Princess Diana, holding 5-year-old bridesmaid Clementine Hambro, with Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace following her wedding to Prince Charles on July 29, 1981. (European Pressphoto Agency)

Elizabeth celebrates the wedding of her eldest son, Prince Charles, to Lady Diana Spencer at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London.

Queen Elizabeth II inspects the damage after a fire at Windsor Castle in November 1992. (Tim Graham/Getty Images)

Elizabeth delivers a speech to mark the 40th anniversary of her accession in which she refers to 1992 as an “annus horribilis.” It was a year in which the palace was rocked by news of Charles and Diana’s separation, Anne’s divorce from Mark Phillips, Andrew’s separation from Sarah Ferguson and a fire at Windsor Castle.

Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, Prince Philip, look at floral tributes left outside Buckingham Palace on Sept. 5, 1997, following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. (AFP /Getty Images)

Princess Diana dies in a car crash in Paris. Caught off guard by the eruption of grief, the queen draws criticism for making no public expression of mourning until eventually, under pressure from Prime Minister Tony Blair’s office, she goes on live television to “pay tribute to Diana myself.”

Celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary, the queen describes her husband as “my strength and stay all these years.”

Members of the royal family at Windsor Castle for the funeral of Princess Margaret on Feb. 15, 2002. (Associated Press)

Elizabeth celebrates her Golden Jubilee, marking 50 years on the throne. The year is also marked by the deaths of her mother, Elizabeth, and sister, Margaret.

Queen Elizabeth II poses with President Obama in the Music Room of Buckingham Palace ahead of a state banquet on May 24, 2011. (AFP/ Getty Images)

Queen Elizabeth II hosts a state banquet for President Obama and his wife, Michelle, at Buckingham Palace. She has met 12 U.S. presidents.

Prince Charles kisses his mother's hand at a Jubilee week concert at Buckingham Palace on June 4, 2012. (AFP / Getty Images)

Elizabeth celebrates her Diamond Jubilee, marking 60 years of her reign.

Elizabeth greets well-wishers on her 90th birthday in Windsor. (Justin Tallis / AFP/Getty Images )

Elizabeth celebrates her 90th birthday. In a sign of how much the world has changed since she became queen, she sends out a thank you message via Twitter to those posting messages using the hashtag #HappyBirthdayYourMajesty.