THE WOMAN BEHIND THE CROWN

The Queen lived her long life in the public eye but still found time for her own interests and passions.

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1 The Queen was born on April 21, 1926, at 17, Bruton Street, Mayfair, the London home of her maternal grandparents. She was christened Elizabeth Alexandra Mary of York, and as children, she and her younger sister, Princess Margaret Rose, were educated at home.

2 A lifelong love of horses began when the young Princess Elizabeth, aged just four, was given a Shetland pony called Peggy by her grandfather, King George V.

3 Princess Elizabeth enrolled as a Guide at the age of eleven and later became a Sea Ranger. During World War II, she became the first female royal to see active duty as a member of the Armed Forces when she joined the ATS.