Her Majesty The Queen celebrates 65 years on the throne

The first monarch to celebrate a Sapphire Jubilee (Pic: David Bailey 2017)

Queen Elizabeth II has made history today as the first British monarch to reach a Sapphire jubilee.

The celebration follows last year’s announcement that she had become the longest-reigning monarch in the UK at the age of 89.

 

The Accession Day – the anniversary of the day she became a monarch – will be marked with a gun salute in Green Park and the Tower of London later today. However, it is a low-key event for the Queen, who will be spending the next few days in private at the Sandringham Estate.

 

The Royal Mint has honoured the Queen with a selection of sapphire jubilee coins, which can be purchased from their website for those who wish to commemorate the occasion. The Royal Mail has issued a Sapphire Blue £5 stamp.

 

The new stamp (Pic: Royal Mail)

In honour of the momentous event, a fitting portrait of the Queen has also been re-issued, taken by British photographer David Bailey, picturing Her Majesty wearing a necklace made of 16 oblong sapphires.

 

The necklace was a wedding present, given to her by King George VI in 1947. She will be able toast another achievement in November, as she and the Duke of Edinburgh celebrate 70 years of marriage.