Queen Elizabeth II becomes longest reigning monarch: Key moments from an eventful six decades

There is rarely a dull moment when you're the Queen

Queen Elizabeth watches a preview of her Christmas message wearing a pair of 3D glasses, studded with Swarovski crystals in the form of a "Q", at Buckingham Palace in central London, 2012

Queen Elizabeth II becomes Britain’s longest reigning monarch after 63 years as the Head of State on Wednesday.

In that time, she has overseen 12 prime ministers, made official visits to 270 countries, and is now said to be worth £340 million (you can find out more about what she costs here).

Her Majesty has presided over post war recovery, the 7/7 London terror attacks and posturing that sparked fears a nuclear war with Russia was nigh. She served as Second Subaltern Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor in the Second World War, sent her first email from an Army base and travelled more miles than any other monarch in history.

The Queen has also had memorable moments more recently, such as being spotted impatiently driving around a couple blocking her way to church.

Buckingham Palace calculates she will have reigned for 23,226 days, 16 hours and approximately 30 minutes at the moment she became longest reigning monarch, a few minutes longer than Queen Victoria. Here a just a few of those moments from over six decades of power.

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