Queen Elizabeth becomes worlds second longest ruling monarch
Queen Elizabeth will become the world’s second longest-ruling monarch on Sunday, surpassing King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand whose reign lasted 70 years, 126 days before his death in 2016 at the age of 88.
King Bhumibol Adulyadej ruled over Thailand from 1946 and to this day, holds the title of the longest-reigning monarch in Thai history.
During King Adulyadej's reign, the Thai royal family welcomed the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh on their five-day state visit to Thailand in 1996, where Queen Sirikit of Thailand hosted a state banquet in honour of Queen Elizabeth.
To commemorate King Adulyadej's 70th anniversary of the accession to the throne in 2016, Queen Elizabeth sent a message to congratulate the king, saying: "the relationship between our two countries, which has lasted over 400 years, (and) has become even stronger during Your Majesty’s reign."
The 96-year-old Elizabeth, Britain's longest-reigning and currently the world's oldest monarch, became queen on February 6, 1952, after the death of her father King George VI. She was crowned on June 2, 1953, at Westminster Abbey, the first coronation to be televised.
France’s King Louis XIV currently holds the record for the longest-reigning monarch, who ruled for around 72 years, beginning his reign from the age of 4 in 1643 until his death in 1715, aged 77.
On September 9, 2015, Queen Elizabeth surpassed the 63 years, that her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria spent on the throne to become the country's longest-reigning monarch in a line dating back to Norman King William the Conqueror in 1066.
Queen Elizabeth's seven decades on the throne were marked by four days of celebration which began on Thursday (June 2) and saw the nation come together, rejoicing in the Queen's 70 years and four months of reign.