Queen Elizabeth II's reign over the UK and Commonwealth began on February 6, 1952, and lasted until September 8, 2022, lasting for 70 years until her death aged 96. Throughout those seven decades on the throne, Her Majesty has seen some of the most important international historical events that have ever taken place. Read on to learn what the Queen got to see during her life...

On November 22, 1963, then-President of the United States John F. Kennedy was assassinated, shocking not only the American population but the whole world. Two years later, in 1965, Queen Elizabeth erected a memorial monument, at Runnymede, Berkshire.

In July 1969 something that many people considered unthinkable happened: Neil Armstrong became the first man to land on the moon through the historical Apollo 11 mission. Back then, Her Majesty had already served as the Queen for 17 years! Armstrong had even the chance to meet her, in what was a slightly awkward encounter as he was very sick and couldn’t stop coughing. As expected, Queen Elizabeth reacted in the most light-hearted wat to that.

By 1971, Queen Elizabeth had already served almost two decades as the Queen of England, and was able to witness one of the most important events in the history of technology. After several failed attempts, computer programmer Ray Tomlinson sent the very first e-mail through the ARPANET system, which was the precursor of the Internet.

In 1979, Margaret Thatcher became the first female Prime Minister in the United Kingdom. Queen Elizabeth did not only witness the moment, but also worked along with her for the next 11 years. Thatcher eventually resigned in 1990. The Queen then appointed Theresa May as PM in 2016 and her last official engagement before her death saw her appoint Liz Truss as the third female PM of her reign.

The year 1986 marked one of the most devastating years in world history, as it was announced that a terrible explosion through reactor no. 4 had taken place at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine. Following the nuclear accident at least 31 people passed away, while numerous flora and fauna species were highly affected, not to mention severe long-term health issues.

The demolition of the Berlin Wall marked the end of communism in Eastern and Central Europe, and therefore marked the end of tragic losses as people constantly tried to cross the wall into West Germany. The event took place in 1989, when Queen Elizabeth was close to celebrate her 40th year as the head of the British throne.

Queen Elizabeth was also able to witness another significant historical event in terms of technology. In 1996 the first mammal was successfully cloned from an adult somatic cell. Dolly was born on July 5th of that year, marking one of the must impressive technological developments of the time.

Prior to her 50th anniversary as the Queen, Her Majesty witnessed one of the most terrible events that had taken place in the United States. On September 11, 2001, four coordinated air attacks targeted different prominent American buildings. Four planes were hijacked by terrorist group al-Qaeda members, crashing into significant buildings including New York City’s World Trade Center. Back then, Queen Elizabeth released a statement that read: “These are dark and harrowing times for families and friends of those who are missing or who suffered in the attack. My thoughts and my prayers are with you all now and in the difficult days ahead.”

From 2010 to 2020 the Queen got to see her grandchildren marry and the next generation of royals take shape. Prince William and Duchess Catherine tied the knot in April 2011. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle walked down the aisle in May 2018. That same year, in October, Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank said ‘I do’. This marked an historical event as the children of the three royal couples, George, Charlotte and Louis; Archie and Lilibet Diana; and August, marked a new generation in the British Royal Family.

The first trimester of 2020 will always be remembered as one of the most tough ones in recent years, following the health crisis due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The increasing number of COVID-19 cases led to isolation, quarantine and lockdown, while most of the public events, including those presided by Queen Elizabeth, had to be canceled, re-scheduled or postponed. Her Majesty herself tested positive for Coronavirus in February 2022, but luckily was able to overcome it.