{"id":150085,"date":"2015-09-09T06:24:57","date_gmt":"2015-09-09T06:24:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/4cd.e16.myftpupload.com\/?p=150085"},"modified":"2015-09-09T06:24:57","modified_gmt":"2015-09-09T06:24:57","slug":"queen-elizabeth-ii-becomes-longest-reigning-uk-monarch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/2015\/09\/queen-elizabeth-ii-becomes-longest-reigning-uk-monarch\/","title":{"rendered":"Queen Elizabeth II becomes longest-reigning UK monarch"},"content":{"rendered":"

Queen Elizabeth II becomes Britain’s longest-reigning monarch later when she passes the record set by her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria.<\/p>\n

The Queen will have reigned for 63 years and seven months – calculated at 23,226 days, 16 hours and approximately 30 minutes at about 17:30 BST.<\/p>\n

Prime Minister David Cameron will lead tributes in the House of Commons and there will be a River Thames salute.<\/p>\n

The Queen, who is 89, will spend the day on official duties in Scotland.<\/p>\n

The exact moment the Queen reaches the milestone is not known because her father, George VI, passed away in the early hours of 6 February 1952.<\/p>\n

Business in the Commons will be postponed for half an hour so MPs can pay tribute to the Queen.<\/p>\n

On the Thames, a flotilla of historic vessels, leisure cruisers and passenger boats will take part in a procession between Tower Bridge and the Houses of Parliament.<\/p>\n

The bridge will lift as a sign of respect and HMS Belfast will sound a four-gun salute.<\/p>\n

The BT Tower in central London will scroll the message “Long may she reign”.<\/p>\n

It will be day 23,226 of her reign. The Queen is determined that it should in no way be exceptional.<\/p>\n

She has let it be known with some emphasis that she does not want a fuss to be made.<\/p>\n

It is evidently viewed as bad form for one long-lived queen to be seen in any way to be celebrating the passing of a record set by another long-lived queen.<\/p>\n

But of course that is precisely why 9 September 2015 is notable in its way. Elizabeth II will become the longest-reigning monarch in British history, passing the record set by her great-great-grandmother Victoria.<\/p>\n

And in an institution as old as the monarchy, that is a rather striking measure to add to the other memorable features of her reign.<\/p>\n

She may not want there to be a fuss but it would seem that a good number of British citizens, to say nothing of those from further afield, believe that her record-breaking reign deserves a little recognition.<\/p>\n

A constant amid gale-force changes<\/p>\n

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Buckingham Palace has released an official photograph to mark the occasion, taken by Mary McCartney in the Queen’s private audience room.<\/p>\n

This is where she holds weekly audiences with prime ministers of the day, and receives visiting heads of state and government.<\/p>\n

The prime minister’s official spokeswoman said Mr Cameron had paid tribute to the Queen at a cabinet meeting on Monday.<\/p>\n

Mr Cameron said the Queen had a “remarkable record” and was “a symbol of Britain’s enduring spirit admired around the world”.<\/p>\n

It is understood that Wednesday will be a normal working day for the monarch with no special celebration.<\/p>\n

She will be joined by the Duke of Edinburgh to open the \u00a3294m Scottish Borders Railway and make a steam train journey with Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.<\/p>\n

The Queen is taking her traditional summer break at this time of year at her private Scottish home, Balmoral.<\/p>\n