Elizabeth Alexandra Mary was born to The Duke and Duchess of York. She is the first granddaughter for Their Majesties King George V and Queen Mary.

Unknown at the time, little Lilibet would become a record breaking, internationally acclaimed monarch whose duty to the nation and Commonwealth is celebrated across the world. Today the Queen celebrates her 86th birthday with her family in the year of her Diamond Jubilee.

If only King George V & Queen Mary could see her now! How proud they would be!

Happy birthday, Ma’am!

Throughout her reign, Queen Elizabeth has acted as a strong guiding moral leader, as well as inspiring tolerance and kindness in others, with her recent state visit to Ireland as just one of many examples. She shows no sign of slowing down, so join us on donning our caps to celebrate Her Majesty’s 85th birthday.

Purchase the cover for Her Majesty’s 85th birthday here. For the 2011 Royal Wedding covers, click here.

Alongside Her Majesty’s 85th birthday, we are also celebrating Prince Philip’s 90th birthday and have created a beautiful commemorative cover to pair up with our Queen Elizabeth cover.

Prince Philip, both before and during his tenure as Queen consort, has shown the utmost dedication to his people and his country. To celebrate his incredible 90th birthday this year, we have produced a stunning commemorative cover honouring the Duke of Edinburgh.

Purchase the Prince Philip birthday cover here.

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An elderly gentleman is looking at you with a curious eye. What you’re saying seems to interest him, but he suddenly blurts out, “We don’t come here for our health. We can think of other ways of enjoying ourselves”.

There it is – Prince Philip’s opinion, whether you’re ready or not. You always know where you stand with the Queen’s husband.

Today marks the dazzling Duke’s 90th birthday, and he has shown no sign of slowing down, physically or verbally. This post looks back on the monarchy’s most powerful personality and Britain’s longest-serving consort.

A Son Is Born

Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark began life on the small Greek island of Corfu. He was born June 10, 1921 to Prince Andrew of Greece and his wife, Princess Alice of Battenberg. The young prince was the final addition to their family of four children.

Greece was politically unstable throughout the 1920s, and Philip’s uncle, King Constantine I of Greece, was forced to abdicate the throne in 1922. Prince Andrew, the king’s younger brother, was sentenced to death by revolutionaries.

King George V of Great Britain sent Royal Navy ship HMS Calypso to evacuate the Greek Royal Family. He felt immense guilt over the deaths of the Romanovs – his Russian cousin Tsar Nicholas II and his family – after he had denied them asylum in England during the Russian revolution. The king was determined not to make the same mistake. The ship arrived in time to get Prince and Princess Andrew and their children to safety. Baby Philip was carried aboard the vessel in an orange crate.

They lived in exile in France, where Philip’s childhood was darkened by the departure of Prince Andrew to a mistress and Princess Alice to a nervous breakdown. Philip’s sisters, all several years older than he, married and went off to live their own lives. With the breakup of his immediate family, Philip traveled Europe, bouncing from family member to family member. The prince had only battered suitcases, an old suit, his naval uniform, and his father’s shaving kit.

There was no time to dwell upon the negative, however. In his characteristically Philip way, he pushed himself to strive for excellence. He seemed to excel in everything he did, whether it be sport or naval life. His maternal uncle, Lord Louis Mountbatten, liked what he saw and took the young prince under his wing.

The ambitious Mountbatten, First Sea Lord in the Royal Navy and Viceroy of India, was also intensely interested in his nephew’s marital prospects. When Philip spoke of courting Britain’s Princess Elizabeth, whom he’d first met when King George and Queen Elizabeth toured Dartmouth Naval College, Mountbatten was thrilled.

Becoming English

King George VI was initially hesitant about the blond young foreigner. The king was protective of his two daughters, especially Princess Elizabeth, his heir. His Majesty had already lined up several eligible bachelors – all titled gentlemen, and most importantly, all English. The coarse young Greek prince in his threadbare suit was not in the least a gentleman in the eyes of the king. But Elizabeth, charmed by the thought of a romance with the Viking-esque prince, liked Philip immensely.

There were harumphs all around, except for Queen Mary. She liked Philip immediately. The prince’s bawdy jokes and lighthearted banter endeared him to the elderly queen, who saw Philip for what he was – straightforward, insightful, and clever.

When asked what sort of a son-in-law someone like Philip would make, Queen Mary sharply replied, “Useful”.

The impressively regal queen had once been a princess of Teck, the German principality which her paternal family governed. The Tecks were considered to be minor royals and financially poor relations. When Mary had been proposed as a match for King Edward VII’s heir, Albert Victor (Eddy), she was mocked and teased by Eddy’s sisters. Queen Victoria, however, was extremely impressed by the sensible Mary and deemed her a proper consort. Victoria knew that she would steer the feckless prince away from a life of debauchery.

Eddy died before the marriage could take place, but that didn’t deter the queen. She decided that Mary should become engaged to her other grandson, George. Victoria was entirely confident of Mary’s ability to be an excellent consort, and history has proven her absolutely correct.

Queen Mary, too, was proven correct in her sharp assessment of consorts.

Marriage To England’s Heir

Letters flew back and forth between Elizabeth and Philip during his tenure in the Royal Navy. After World War II came to an end, they quietly got engaged. King George VI eventually relented and gave his consent, but declared that they should delay matters until Elizabeth turned 21 the following year. During the waiting period, Philip had to convert to the Anglican Church of England and relinquish his title as a Prince of Greece and Denmark. The prince relinquished it all and became Philip Mountbatten, the Anglicized version of his Battenberg family name.

On November 20, 1947, Philip and Elizabeth married at Westminster Abbey. Prior to the wedding day, the king conferred upon Philip the titles of The Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Merioneth and Baron Greenwich as well as the style of His Royal Highness. When the couple took their vows, Elizabeth officially became known as HRH The Duchess of Edinburgh.

The royal couple enjoyed their time together, spending their honeymoon at Broadlands, Lord Mountbatten’s estate. When Philip was posted on duty in the Royal Navy, Elizabeth would often accompany him. Soon, however, Elizabeth was filling in for her father on official duties more often. The king’s cancer was rapidly spreading, and on top of this he was also suffering from ateriosclerosis.

During Elizabeth and Philip’s official royal tour, King George VI died. The painful news bulletin came through to Philip while they were in Africa, and he was now given the task of informing Elizabeth. When Martin Charteris, then Assistant Private Secretary, went to see her, she was composed. Philip had been the rock she needed to keep going, and Charteris noted that the new Queen was ‘very composed, an absolute master of her fate”. A new chapter had begun for the royal couple.

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Elizabeth by Sarah Bradford
Official Website of the British Monarchy

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The health and longevity of Queen Elizabeth II has been remarkable. Yesterday Her Majesty turned 85 years old and she is still as active as ever.

On December 20th, 2007, Her Majesty became Britain’s longest-lived monarch and she’s still going strong. She beat out Queen Victoria, who died in 1901 aged 81 years, seven months, four weeks and one day. Buckingham Palace calculated the moment down to the hour.

For all of the official historic milestones, one may forget the personal milestones the Queen enjoys. Elizabeth’s eldest grandson Peter provided her with her first great-grandchild; and two other grandchildren are getting married – her heir, Prince William, and Zara Phillips. Milestone wedding anniversaries, birthdays, and more great-grandchildren are sure to follow.

There is no doubt that Elizabeth will next surpass Queen Victoria as the longest reigning monarch, but let us also look forward to more joyful personal moments for Her Majesty. With those times comes the root of her longevity – happiness.

Anne, The Princess Royal, is still the same straight-talking princess she has always been, even at age 60.

The second child of the Queen and Prince Philip was born August 15th, 1950. Anne’s claim to fame is her simple, no-nonsense approach to life and her hard work. Like her father, she has a disdainful approach to the press and shuns the limelight as often as possible. Anne simply dives in to her job, whether it’s traveling to Africa for her children’s charity or supporting her Princess Royal Trust for Carers.

The Queen’s strong sense of duty and thrift are also a large part of Anne’s makeup. Like the Queen, Anne never fussed about gowns or jewels, except when she was required to attend a formal royal event. Her true place was out in the country riding horses, attending to her dogs, or working on her schedule of royal duties.

When she married Captain Mark Phillips, a fellow equestrian, their children were not given titles. Anne’s reasoning was simple: it would keep them out of the limelight. As a princess, it was inevitable that Anne had to deal with the spotlight growing up, but she made sure that her children Peter and Zara would not feel any public pressure.

Anne’s natural grace on a horse has been passed on to her daughter Zara, who is currently training to join Britain’s Olympic team. Her son Peter and his wife are expecting their first child – Anne’s first grandchild and the Queen’s first great-grandchild – in December.

The princess’ family is happy, strong, and as down-to-earth as ever. I wish Her Royal Highness all the best for her birthday.

Recommended:

BBC Sport – The Princess Royal at 60
Anne at 60 – More Regal Than Mum?
Princess Anne Not Slowing Down