How the Queen came to hold 7 Guinness World Records

94-year-old monarch holds record for wealthiest queen

Guinness World Records held by The Queen (Getty)

In the 68 years since Queen Elizabeth II took the British throne, the 94-year-old monarch has made history many times over.

Among her many accomplishments are Guinness World Record titles, which the Queen holds quite a few of.

From longest-reigning queen to the wealthiest, these are seven of Queen Elizabeth’s Guinness World Records.

Oldest British queen

On 21 December 2007, Queen Elizabeth II officially became the title-holder of oldest British queen at the age of 81 and 244 days old.

The record was previously held by the monarch’s great, great grandmother, Queen Victoria.

Longest-reigning queen

Queen Elizabeth II is the longest-reigning queen (Getty)

Queen Elizabeth is perhaps most recognisable for holding the title of the world’s longest-reigning queen.

On 6 February 1952, the Queen succeeded to the throne following the death of her father King George VI.

Her reign exceeded Queen Victoria’s on 9 September 2015, after ruling for more than 63 years.

As of the Queen’s 94th birthday on 21 April 2020, she has ruled uninterrupted for 68 years and 75 days.

Oldest current monarch

the Queen is the fourth-longest reigning monarch ever (Getty)

In 2015, Queen Elizabeth became the world’s oldest monarch when the former title holder, King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia, died at the age of 90.

Longest-reigning living monarch

While the Queen is currently the fourth-longest reigning monarch in the world, she does hold the title of the longest-reigning living monarch.

The top three longest-reigning monarchs include King Louis XIV of France, who ruled for 72 years and 110 days, followed by Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who ruled for 70 years and 126 days and King Johann II of Liechtenstein, who was ruler for 70 years and 91 days.

Most countries to be head of state of simultaneously

According to Guinness World Records, Queen Elizabeth holds the record “in terms of the number of independent nations for which the same person is lawfully Head of State at the same time” with 16.

Acknowledging that this makes her “possibly the most powerful woman in the world,” the book of records states: “While the Queen's role is nominal and ceremonial (exercising no political powers), more than 139m people in 15 Commonwealth states (plus the UK) recognise her as their monarch.”

Most currencies featuring the same individual

The Queen's image has appeared on currency of at least 35 countries (Getty)

Queen Elizabeth’s image appears on the coinage of at least 35 different countries, while Queen Victoria’s image appeared on currency from 21 countries and King George V appeared on 19.

Wealthiest queen

In 2012 The Sunday Times estimated the Queen’s total wealth, including fine art, jewellery and property, to be $504m (£310m).