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Queen Elizabeth II, Britain's longest reigning monarch, passed away on September 8, 2022, at the age of 96. News of her demise was announced on the Royal Family's Twitter account on Thursday. Sharing a monochrome picture of the late Queen, the official statement read:
“The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon. The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow.”
After serving for 70 years on the British throne, she was succeeded by her eldest son, King Charles III.
Her reign of 70 years and 214 days began in February 1952 until her death. While she remains the longest ruling British monarch, she's not the longest-serving ruler in the world.
Contrary to popular opinions, Queen Elizabeth II is not the longest serving monarch in the world. It is in fact, France’s King Louis XIV, who surpassed her for that title. Queen Elizabeth II, however, is the longest reigning female head of state in history.
During her seven-decade-long reign, Queen Elizabeth saw 15 UK prime ministers, more than a dozen United States presidents, and nine Popes change in front of her. Before her, the record of the longest ruling British monarch was set by her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria. She ruled for 63 years, from 1837 to 1901.
France’s King Louis XIV became a monarch at the age of four
As per Biography, Louis XIV, who was the son of Louis XIII and his queen, Anne of Austria, was only four years old when he ascended to rule France and was named the king. However, since he was too young to rule, his mother relied on Louis XIV's godfather, Cardinal Jules Mazarin, to serve as the de facto ruler.
At the age of 15, he was crowned the king, and seven years later, gained full control of France. He called himself the "Sun King" because, as per Offbeat France, he saw himself as the center and most important figure of France, just like the sun is in the solar system with planets revolving around it.
Known as a strong-willed ruler, as per the BBC, Louis XIV ruled France for 72 years.
Aside from Louis XIV and Queen Elizabeth, the others in line for the title of longest-serving monarchs are Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand (70 years, 126 days), Johann II of Liechtenstein (70 years, 91 days) and K’inich Janaab Pakal of Palenque (68 years, 33 days).
