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Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-ruling queen, died on September 8, 2022. She was 96 years of age. Buckingham Palace announced that she had died at Balmoral Castle, her summer residence in Scotland, where members of the royal family had traveled to earlier that day.
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The BBC played the national anthem, God Save the Queen over a portrait of her as her death was announced, and the flag over Buckingham Palace was lowered to half-mast. Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor was born in London on April 21, 1926.She was named queen after the death of her father — King George VI — in February 1952.
(1)What did you know about Queen Elizabeth II before reading this article?
(2)Does the British royal family often appear in the news where you live?
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However, she didn’t “officially” become queen until June 1953.It was the first time the coronation (an official ceremony in which a king or queen receives their crown) of a British monarch was broadcast on television.
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Since becoming queen, Elizabeth saw a Britain that rebuilt from World War II, lost its empire, and joined and left the European Union.More recently, she watched as the country experienced the COVID-19 pandemic — a disease she herself had in February 2022.
(1)Have you ever visited Buckingham Palace? If not, would you like to?
(2)Could you see yourself living in the UK? Do you have friends or family there?
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Elizabeth was also the head of state of more than a dozen ex-British colonies, including Canada, Australia and New Zealand. She was also the head of the 56-country Commonwealth.
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In 2022, she celebrated her Platinum Jubilee, a celebration of 70-years as a queen — the longest of any British monarch.The record had previously belonged to Queen Victoria, who was queen for 63 years from 1837 to 1901. Elizabeth’s 73-year-old son Charles now automatically becomes king, though his coronation may not take place for a number of months.He will be known as King Charles III.
