People.com Royals Queen Elizabeth Turns 96: See the Most Iconic Moments from Her Historic Reign Look back at some of the most notable moments from Queen Elizabeth's life By Maria Mercedes Lara Maria Mercedes Lara Instagram Twitter Digital Content Operations Director, PEOPLE. People Editorial Guidelines and Erin Hill Erin Hill Twitter Senior News Editor, PEOPLE People Editorial Guidelines Updated on April 21, 2022 09:36 AM Share Tweet Pin Email 01 of 41 WARTIME DUTY Popperfoto/Getty In 1945, a then-Princess Elizabeth did her part for the war effort when she served as an ambulance driver for the Auxiliary Territorial Service during World War II. 02 of 41 QUICK WIT Diana Walker/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Queen Elizabeth II made President Ronald Reagan laugh during a state dinner at Windsor Castle in 1982. 03 of 41 ANNUS HORRIBILIS Tim Graham Picture Library/Getty In 1992, Queen Elizabeth II gave her now-famous "Annus Horribilis" speech on the 40th anniversary of her succession. During that year, Princess Anne and Prince Andrew ended their marriages, Prince Charles and Princess Diana's marriage imploded in the press and Windsor Castle was extensively damaged in a fire. 04 of 41 A UNITED ROYAL FAMILY Ben A. Pruchnie/Getty Prince Charles, Princess Kate, Princess Charlotte, Prince George, Prince William and Prince Harry joined Queen Elizabeth II on the balcony of Buckingham Palace in 2016 for the special Trooping the Colour flypast in honor of her 90th birthday. 05 of 41 SCOTTISH DAYS Lichfield/Getty Queen Elizabeth II posed with Prince Philip and their children at her favorite castle — Balmoral — in 1972. 06 of 41 SAY CHEESE Peter Macdiarmid/Pool/Getty A cheeky young man snapped a selfie with Queen Elizabeth II when she visited Belfast, Northern Ireland, in 2014. 07 of 41 THE WINDSOR WOMEN Ken Goff/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Princess Margaret, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and Queen Elizabeth II stepped out onto the balcony at Buckingham Palace to celebrate the Queen Mother's 100th birthday in 2000. Both Margaret and the Queen Mother would pass away two years later. 08 of 41 WOMEN IN POWER Anwar Hussein/Getty Queen Elizabeth II was joined by Margaret Thatcher in Zambia for the Commonwealth conference in 1979. 09 of 41 THE NEW QUEEN OFF/AFP/Getty Queen Elizabeth II is greeted by Sir Winston Churchill, Clement Attlee, Anthony Eden and Frederick James Marquis, 1st Earl of Woolton and Lord President of the Council, as she arrived from Kenya, where she was on a royal tour when her father King George VI died in 1952. 10 of 41 SISTER SISTER Lisa Sheridan/Studio Lisa/Getty Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret played with their dogs outside the Royal Lodge in Windsor Castle during a portrait session in 1942. 11 of 41 DIANA YEARS Fox Photos/Getty Queen Elizabeth II posed with Prince Charles and his then-fiancée Lady Diana Spencer at Buckingham Palace in 1981. Several months later, Diana and Charles would be married. 12 of 41 AT THE WHEEL Bob Haswell/Express/Getty In 1958, Queen Elizabeth II flashed a smile when she drove herself to a polo match in Windsor. 13 of 41 LIL' LILIBET Marcus Adams/Paul Popper/Popperfoto/Getty A then-Princess Elizabeth posed for a portrait in 1928. One of the snaps from this sitting ended up on the cover of TIME that same year. 14 of 41 TOUCH UPS Queen Elizabeth. David Levenson/Getty Queen Elizabeth II took a momeny during the Windsor Horse Show in 1985 to reapply her lipstick. 15 of 41 QUEEN OF STYLE Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Queen Elizabeth II looked chic in white when she attended a garden party in Sydney in 1954. 16 of 41 ROYAL GRANDMA Anwar Hussein/Getty Queen Elizabeth attempted to calm her first grandchild, Peter Phillips, after her started to cry after his christening in 1977. Peter is being held by his mother Princess Anne. 17 of 41 CRACKING UP Kate Middleton and Queen Elizabeth. Phil Noble/WPA Pool/Getty Queen Elizabeth II made Kate Middleton laugh during an event in Nottingham, England, in 2012. 18 of 41 MUST LOVE DOGS Lichfield/Getty Queen Elizabeth II posed with two of her beloved corgis during her annual summer vacation at Balmoral Castle in 1971. 19 of 41 QUEENLY CALM GAMMA/Gamma-Keystone/Getty Queen Elizabeth II didn't break her stride when a guard fainted during the Trooping the Colour ceremony in 1970. The Queen showed similar calm when a man fired six blanks at her while she rode past during the Trooping the Colour ceremony in 1981. 20 of 41 OPENING UP Jim Bennett Queen Elizabeth II made headlines when she was spotted driving Princess Kate's mother Carole Middleton during an outing at Balmoral in 2016. The moment signified that the royal family had opened up more to their in-laws after several high-profile divorces. 21 of 41 A ROSE FOR ENGLAND Ralf-Finn Hestoft/CORBIS/Corbis/Getty Queen Elizabeth II recieved a rose from a young mourner outside Princess Diana's funeral in 1997. 22 of 41 GRANNY'S PRIDE Tim Graham/Getty Queen Elizabeth II exchanged a smile with grandson Prince Harry while inspecting soldiers at the Sovereign's Parade at the Sandhurst Military Academy in 2006. 23 of 41 HORSE GIRL Queen Elizabeth. Lichfield/Getty An avid horsewoman, Queen Elizabeth II rode on horseback during a family vacation at Balmoral Castle in 1971. 24 of 41 STIFF UPPER LIP LEON NEAL/AFP/Getty Queen Elizabeth II kept a straight face during her hilarious entrance during the Opening Ceremony for the London 2012 Olympic Games. Her stern expression from this event would later become a meme. 25 of 41 HAPPIER TIMES Lichfield/Getty Queen Elizabeth II appeared in high spirits onboard the HMY Britannia in 1972. The yacht, which was beloved by the Queen, was decommissioned by Parliament in 1997. 26 of 41 GLITTER QUEEN ODD ANDERSEN/AFP/Getty Queen Elizabeth II sparkled in diamonds as attended the Opening of Parliament in 2000. 27 of 41 A TIME FOR MOURNING Tim Graham/Getty Queen Elizabeth II laid a wreath outside the Dunblane Primary School in Scotland in 1996. The school was the site of one of the deadliest mass shootings in the United Kingdom's history when a gunman killed 16 children and their teacher before taking his own life. 28 of 41 ROYAL WEDDING Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip's wedding. Popperfoto/Getty Queen Elizabeth II married Prince Philip in 1947. 29 of 41 THE BRITISH BULLDOG Central Press/Getty Queen Elizabeth II chatted with Prime Minister Winston Churchill in 1953. She was joined by a young Prince Charles and Princess Anne. 30 of 41 SHARP SHOOTER Tim Ockenden/PA Queen Elizabeth II fired a SA 80 rifle when she attended the centenary of the Army Rifle Association at Bisley, England, in 1993. 31 of 41 LETTING LOOSE Popper/Popperfoto/Getty A then-Princess Elizabeth played around with crewmembers aboard the HMS Vanguard during the royal family's trip to South Africa in 1947. 32 of 41 FULL REGALIA Bettmann/CORBIS Queen Elizabeth II posed for a formal portrait after her coronation in 1953. 33 of 41 GIRL POWER Tim Graham Picture Library/Getty Queen Elizabeth II met with the Spice Girls after a performance in London in 1997. 34 of 41 MOTHER AND SON Nick Knight Prince Charles and Queen Elizabeth II posed for a portrait together in 2016. 35 of 41 A HISTORIC ROYAL WEDDING Alexi Lubomirski/AP/REX/Shutterstock The Queen posed alongside the royal family on the occassion of Prince Harry's wedding to Meghan Markle on May 19, 2018. 36 of 41 A FIRST WITH MEGHAN MARKLE Meghan Markle and Queen Elizabeth in 2018. Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images The monarch had her first joint outing with Meghan Markle in June 2018, just weeks after the Duchess of Sussex officially joined the royal family — and the duo were all smiles throughout the event in Cheshire. 37 of 41 KATE'S FIRST SOLO OUTING Mark Cuthbert/UK Press/Getty In March 2019, Kate Middleton joined Queen Elizabeth for a special joint outing — their first since Kate joined the royal family in 2011. The future Queen got further insight into the life of the Sovereign when she and the monarch toured a high-tech university in central London. Kate and the Queen visited King's College's Strand campus, which is housed in the former BBC building, Bush House. 38 of 41 A CHRISTMAS TRADITION REX/Shutterstock On Christmas Day 2018, the monarch delivered her annual broadcast to the Commonwealth. Since 1952, the message has been read by Queen Elizabeth. 39 of 41 QUEEN IN LOCKDOWN Queen Elizabeth's address in April 2020. The Royal Family/Youtube In a rare televised address that aired in the U.K. on April 5, 2020, paid tribute to healthcare workers and praised everyone who is making great changes to their lives amid the coronavirus pandemic. "We should take comfort that while we may have more still to endure, better days will return: we will be with our friends again; we will be with our families again; we will meet again," she said. "But for now, I send my thanks and warmest good wishes to you all." 40 of 41 IN MOURNING Queen Elizabeth. Jonathan Brady - WPA Pool/Getty Images Queen Elizabeth takes her seat during the funeral of her beloved husband Prince Philip at St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle on April 17, 2021. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, only 30 guests were invited and they had to sit several feet apart. 41 of 41 Taking the Reins Queen Elizabeth. henry dallal photography In honor of her 96th birthday, a majestic new portrait shows Queen Elizabeth standing in front of a giant magnolia tree on the grounds of Windsor Castle while holding the reins of two of her favorite fell ponies.