Her Majesty Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith, etc has now become the longest-lived monarch since the union, having today surpassed¹ her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria, who lived to 81 years 7 months and 29 days. Congratulations, Ma’am!

Given the legendary determination of our Sovereign, I would imagine the real goal she is aspiring to reach is 10 September 2015. Should she still be alive then the length of her reign will have exceeded those of both King George III and Queen Victoria.

It’s always a bit weird to commend someone for having gotten older. “Congratulations, you’re not dead yet. Well done, there.” seems a bit odd, really, seeing as how there are so many things that just aren’t in our control. Celebrating birthdays remains fun mostly because it’s an opportunity to exchange presents, get sloshed, etc. But birthdays aren’t the only milestones of longevity, and this particular mark is a bit more exclusive than most!

AfC

¹This according to an article at Wikipedia listing British Monarchs by longevity. Hard to know who has time to dig up and collate this sort of data, but hey.