https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agGQgR981AY Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor II was born April 21st 1926 at 2;40am at Bruton Street in Mayfair, London. Her Uncle, King Edward VIII abdicated in December of 1936 when he decided to give up the throne in order to marry the woman he loved. Once he resigned, Elizabeth's father, King George VI became king. Elizabeth became first in line to the throne. Her family life was spent at 145 Piccadilly, a london house owned by her parents shortly after she was born. She spent time at the country homes of her paternal grandparents, King George V and Queen Mary, and her mother's parents, the Earl and Countess of Strathmore. He sister Margaret Rose was born in 1930. In 1940, at the height of the Blitz, the young Princesses were moved for their safety to Windsor Castle, where they spent most of the war years. Both girls were educated at home, once Elizabeth’s father succeeded the throne, she started to constitutional history and law as preparation for her future role. She received tuition from her father, as well as sessions with Henry Marten, the Vice-Provost of Eton. She was also instructed in religion by the Archbishop of Canterbury. She also learned french from many tudors, she has used it when speaking to ambassadors. She is also a Girl Guide and a Sea Ranger. The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh's enduring marriage has seen them support each other through many years of Royal duties, and has produced four children, eight grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip first met when they attended the wedding of Prince Philip's cousin, Princess Marina of Greece to The Duke of Kent, who was an uncle of Princess Elizabeth, in 1934. Their engagement was announced on 9 July 1947 and the couple were married in Westminster Abbey on 20 November 1947. 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 Queen, their third child, Prince Andrew, arrived in 1960 and the fourth, Prince Edward, in 1964. Prince Andrew and Prince Edward were the first children to be born to a reigning monarch since Queen Victoria had her family. The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh's grandchildren are Peter and Zara Phillips (b. 1977 and 1981); Prince William of Wales and Prince Henry of Wales (b. 1982 and 1984); Princess Beatrice of York and Princess Eugenie of York (b. 1988 and 1990); and The Lady Louise Windsor and Viscount Severn (b.2003 and 2007). Their great grandchildren are Savannah Phillips (b. 2010) and Isla Phillips (b. 2012), children of Peter and Autumn Phillips; Prince George (b. 2013), Princess Charlotte (b. 2015), and Prince Louis (b. 2018) children of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, and Mia Tindall (b. 2014), daughter of Zara and Mike Tindall. King George VI Queen Elizabeth II Prince Charles, Prince of Wales Prince William, Duke of Cambridge Prince George Princess Charlotte Prince Louis Prince Henry (Harry) November 1947 - present: Princess Elizabeth married Prince Philip. July 1981 - August 1996: Prince Charles married Princess Diana, divorced one year before Diana’s death in 1997. April 2011 - present: Prince William married Catherine Middleton of Westminster Abbey . May 2018 - present: Prince Harry married Meghan Markle former American actress. ● Marriages are often highly publicized, positive events for the Royal Family. However, many of these marriages are met with great controversy, particularly from the general public of the UK, which harms the family’s image. ● Prince William marrying Catherine Middleton is the first time a Royal has ever married a commoner. This resulted in mixed feelings from the public; some saw this as a positive change, while others did not like it. ● Prince Harry marrying Meghan Markle is the second commoner marriage, along with Meghan being the first American and the first person of African American descent to marry into the family. Meghan being American and marrying into the family was met with the most controversy from the public. ● The UK is not governed by an absolute monarchy but a parliamentary government; although the royals merely act as diplomatic figureheads, public polling suggests that some UK citizens do not want to have a royal family at all. ● Having a Royal Family may be good for entertainment value or publicity, but, it is somewhat archaic. Some members of the public feel as if this outdated group of former rulers are better off not being Royal, and having Royalty wiped away from the UK’s future. ● The Royal Family itself is a scandal because there are so any mixed public opinions and scrutiny placed on them and their actions. ● Prince Charles is easily the most controversial member of the Royal Family. He is the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II, which makes him, at present moment, the first in line to succeed the throne. His position in the succession of the throne does not help the controversies surrounding him or Royalty in general. ● Prince Charles is very disliked by the general public of the UK and many suggest disbanding the Royal Family in general to avoid Prince Charles becoming King. Many hope that Queen Elizabeth II will pass the throne to Prince William instead. ● Prince Charles is met with controversy mainly regarding his divorce with Princess Diana and his affair/later marriage with Camilla. ● Prince Charles and Princess Diana’s marriage was filled with scandals like Prince Charles’ ongoing affair with Camilla, his current wife. ● Prince Charles and Princess Diana were not happy and formally divorced in 1996 (Diana was able to keep her title of “Princess of Wales” in a settlement). ● Princess Diana was killed in Paris, 1997, in a car crash that spawned many conspiracy theories. Prince Charles then married his long-time lover, Camilla, in 2005. The Royal Family and public alike were not too happy with Camilla. ○ Many wonder if Diana’s car crash was set up on purpose. What does the general public have to say about the Royal Family? While there is a percentage of those who want to abolish the monarchy, majority of people still seem to like the Royal Family. According to The Insider, Prince Harry is the most liked royal (77%), the Queen is second (74%), and Prince William in third (73%). Also, according to Statista, Prince Charles only has a 3% approval rating. Graph from Statista The Brits have been in power for a really long time - since early medieval Scotland and Anglo-Saxon England. The House of Windsor, in particular, has been in power since 1917, when they changed their name because the original was “too German.” Around the time James Joyce had recently published “The Dead” and before W.B. Yeats wrote “The Second Coming,” both of which are texts we’ve explored this semester. Racial tensions have changed a lot since Elizabeth Barrett Browning wrote “The Runaway Slave.” So much so that a woman of African-American descent recently married into the royal family - Meghan Markle. Markle has received attention due to her race but the overall public opinion is supportive; according to The Insider, Markle has an overall approval rating of 55% and is described as “confident” and “charming.” Goodey, Emma. “Her Majesty The Queen.” The Royal Family, 8 Mar. 2019, www.royal.uk/her-majesty-the-queen. https://www.rd.com/culture/why-charles-didnt-marry-camilla-first/ https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/charles-and-diana-divorce https://www.thisisinsider.com/most-popular-royal-family-members-survey-2018-11#prince-william-is-listed-as-the-third-most-popular-roy al-13 https://www.statista.com/statistics/863893/support-for-the-monarchy-in-britain-by-age/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/ceciliarodriguez/2018/11/14/at-70-is-prince-charles-ready-to-be-king/#647d9a671aaa ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●.