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The Queen is preparing to make history on Monday when she becomes the first British monarch to reach her Sapphire Jubilee.

On February 6 - the anniversary of the day she became Queen - Elizabeth II will have reigned for 65 years.

She became the Queen of England in 1952 after her father George VI, who was suffering from lung cancer, died unexpectedly, in his sleep at Sandringham.

At the time, a 25-year-old Princess Elizabeth was thousands of miles away in Kenya with her husband.

Queen Elizabeth II The Early Years 15 show all Queen Elizabeth II The Early Years 1/15 Childhood trip Princess Elizabeth (left) with her sister Princess Margaret Rose, leaving LIverpool Street Station on their return from Sandringham in 1936 Daily Mail 2/15 Growing up King George VI and Queen Elizabeth (the future Queen Mother) with Princess Elizabeth in 1932 Rex 3/15 Royal Family King George VI, Princess Elizabeth, Queen Elizabeth (the future Queen Mother) and Princess Margaret pose for a family portrait in the late 1930s Everett Collection/Rex 4/15 Coronation Elizabeth waves to the crowds during the coronation of her father, King George VI in May 1937 5/15 Marking history The Royal family poses for the official Coronation group picture on May 24, 1937. (Back, left to right) Princess Anne, Princess Alice, Prince Henry, Queen Mary, King George VI, Queen Elizabeth, Prince George, Princess Marina, Queen Maud of Norway. (Front, left to right) Princess Margaret, and Princess Elizabeth (Queen Elizabeth II) CSU Archives/Everett Collection/Rex 6/15 Theatre fan Princess Elizabeth with her parents at the all-star Coliseum show in 1939 Daily Mail 7/15 Dog lover Princess Elizabeth and her younger sister Princess Margaret Rose in their garden at the Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park in April 1940. The passenger in the wheelbarrow is a corgi named Carol Lisa Sheridan/Studio Lisa/Hulton Archive/Getty Images 8/15 Learning the ropes Princess Elizabeth learns to tie a knot with the girl guides in Frogmore, Windsor, on April 11, 1942 Studio Lisa/Getty Images 9/15 War effort Princess Elizabeth trains as an ATS mechanic in 1945 Popperfoto/Getty Images 10/15 A simpler times King George VI with his grown-up daughter Princess Elizabeth at the Royal Lodge, Windsor, in 1946 Everett Collection/Rex 11/15 Royal Wedding The wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip (Duke of Edinburgh) at Westminster Abbey on November 20 1947. Picture shows the couple on the balcony at Buckingham Palace waving to the crowds Associated Newspapers 12/15 Happy couple Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip photographed at the Palace after the wedding ceremony in 1947 Associated Newspapers 13/15 Future King? Princess Elizabeth gave birth to Prince Charles in 1948, much to the joy of her father King George VI and grandmother Mary News Ltd/Newspix/Rex 14/15 Happy families King George VI, Queen Elizabeth, Princess Elizabeth, Princess Margaret and Princess Anne in the 1950s John Powell/Rex 15/15 Balmoral The Royal Family during a visit to Balmoral Castle: (left to right) Queen Elizabeth, Princess Margaret Rose, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, King George VI, and Princess Elizabeth with her children Prince Charles (left) and Princess Anne. Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, purchased Balmoral Castle in 1846, and the small castle which stood in the 7,000 hectare wooded estate was redeveloped in the 1850s Getty Images 1/15 Childhood trip Princess Elizabeth (left) with her sister Princess Margaret Rose, leaving LIverpool Street Station on their return from Sandringham in 1936 Daily Mail 2/15 Growing up King George VI and Queen Elizabeth (the future Queen Mother) with Princess Elizabeth in 1932 Rex 3/15 Royal Family King George VI, Princess Elizabeth, Queen Elizabeth (the future Queen Mother) and Princess Margaret pose for a family portrait in the late 1930s Everett Collection/Rex 4/15 Coronation Elizabeth waves to the crowds during the coronation of her father, King George VI in May 1937 5/15 Marking history The Royal family poses for the official Coronation group picture on May 24, 1937. (Back, left to right) Princess Anne, Princess Alice, Prince Henry, Queen Mary, King George VI, Queen Elizabeth, Prince George, Princess Marina, Queen Maud of Norway. (Front, left to right) Princess Margaret, and Princess Elizabeth (Queen Elizabeth II) CSU Archives/Everett Collection/Rex 6/15 Theatre fan Princess Elizabeth with her parents at the all-star Coliseum show in 1939 Daily Mail 7/15 Dog lover Princess Elizabeth and her younger sister Princess Margaret Rose in their garden at the Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park in April 1940. The passenger in the wheelbarrow is a corgi named Carol Lisa Sheridan/Studio Lisa/Hulton Archive/Getty Images 8/15 Learning the ropes Princess Elizabeth learns to tie a knot with the girl guides in Frogmore, Windsor, on April 11, 1942 Studio Lisa/Getty Images 9/15 War effort Princess Elizabeth trains as an ATS mechanic in 1945 Popperfoto/Getty Images 10/15 A simpler times King George VI with his grown-up daughter Princess Elizabeth at the Royal Lodge, Windsor, in 1946 Everett Collection/Rex 11/15 Royal Wedding The wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip (Duke of Edinburgh) at Westminster Abbey on November 20 1947. Picture shows the couple on the balcony at Buckingham Palace waving to the crowds Associated Newspapers 12/15 Happy couple Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip photographed at the Palace after the wedding ceremony in 1947 Associated Newspapers 13/15 Future King? Princess Elizabeth gave birth to Prince Charles in 1948, much to the joy of her father King George VI and grandmother Mary News Ltd/Newspix/Rex 14/15 Happy families King George VI, Queen Elizabeth, Princess Elizabeth, Princess Margaret and Princess Anne in the 1950s John Powell/Rex 15/15 Balmoral The Royal Family during a visit to Balmoral Castle: (left to right) Queen Elizabeth, Princess Margaret Rose, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, King George VI, and Princess Elizabeth with her children Prince Charles (left) and Princess Anne. Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, purchased Balmoral Castle in 1846, and the small castle which stood in the 7,000 hectare wooded estate was redeveloped in the 1850s Getty Images

Philip broke the sad news to his wife while they were alone.

Lord Charteris, her then-private secretary, remembered seeing her seated at her desk in the Lodge appearing "very composed, absolute master of her fate".

Asked what name she wished to use as Queen, she is said to have replied simply: "My own name, of course."

The Queen often spends Accession Day privately at Sandringham and this year is not expected to be any different.

There are no big festivities planned to mark the occasion but a range of commemorative coins have been designed.

The Royal Mint will mark the 65th anniversary with a range of specially designed Sapphire Jubilee coins in a range of metals and denominations from £5, £10 and £500 to £1,000.

The recommended retail prices for the commemorative coins range from £13 for the brilliant un-circulated £5 piece to £49,995 for the £1,000 UK gold proof kilo coin.

All the coins feature the Queen's image in profile on the main side but the £5 range has the imperial state crown on the reverse, and an excerpt from Princess Elizabeth's famous speech where she dedicates herself to her future role as Queen.

The Nation's longest reigning monarchs Elizabeth II The Queen, who on February 6 marks 65 years since her accession, became Britain's longest reigning monarch in 2015. She overtook the previous record set by her great-great grandmother Victoria at around 5.30pm on September 9, 2015, at the age of 89 - having been head of state for 23,226 days, 16 hours and some 30 minutes. At 90, she is also the world's oldest monarch and, following the death of the king of Thailand last year, the world's longest reigning living monarch. Queen Victoria Victoria's reign of 63 years and 216 days saw great economic, social and political change. She was Queen at the age of 18 in 1837 and her time on the throne spanned the rest of the century. She became the figurehead of a vast empire.She married Prince Albert and had nine children, but mourned Albert's early death for the rest of her life. She was in ill health by the time she reached her Diamond Jubilee in 1897 and died in 1901 at the age of 81. George III George III reigned for 59 years and 96 days - missing out on his Diamond Jubilee by around 10 months. But for the last nine years of his life, he was declared mentally unfit to rule, and his son the Prince of Wales - later George IV - acted as Prince Regent. George III is widely remembered for two things: losing the American colonies and his so called "madness" - although he is now actually thought to have suffered from a hereditary physical disorder called porphyria. He died in 1820 when he was 81. James VI of Scotland James VI was King of Scotland for 57 years and 246 days. His mother Mary, Queen of Scots, was forced to abdicate in favour of her infant son in 1567 when James was one. He took full control as a teenager. He also later became King James I of England and Ireland when Elizabeth I died, and was the assassination target of the Guy Fawkes gunpowder plot. He was nicknamed "The Wisest Fool in Christendom" and was the father of Charles I. Henry III Henry III ruled for 56 years and 28 days. The 13th-century king was only nine when he became monarch in 1216. The country was ruled by a series of regencies until 1234, when Henry took over. His reign was marked with rebellions by barons. Edward III Edward III became king when he was 14 in 1327 and reigned for 50 years and 148 days. He was the monarch who first created the Duchy of Cornwall to provide his eldest son Edward with an income. He also introduced the Order of the Garter. It remains the highest British order of chivalry. Edward III's reign saw the beginning of the Hundred Years War against France.

It reads: "My whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service."

For the Queen’s Silver Jubilee in 1977 she travelled 56,000 miles around the world in celebration, journeying from Western Samoa, Australia and New Zealand to Tonga, Fiji, Tasmania, Papua New Guinea, Canada and the West Indies.

Street parties were held across the country and beacons lit in her honour and more than one million flocked to the Mall in London and the Queen travelled in a state coach with the Duke of Edinburgh to St Paul's Cathedral for service of thanksgiving.

Her 25-year anniversary fell on the same year as the Lib-Lab pact, the Grunwick picket clashes, punk rock and Red Rum winning the Grand National for a record third time.

It was also the year that the Queen, aged 51, became a grandmother for the first time and that The Sex Pistols released their anti-authoritarian hit God Save The Queen - which was banned on the airwaves.

1992 was the year of the Queen's 40th anniversary on the throne and her Ruby Jubilee.

It was better known as her "annus horribilis" - one of the most difficult periods of her reign – as her chidren’s marriages were in tatters and public opinion turned against the Royals.

In an unusually personal address at a London Guildhall luncheon in November 1992 to mark her 40th year on the throne, the Queen told guests: "1992 is not a year on which I shall look back with undiluted pleasure."

She added: "In the words of one of my more sympathetic correspondents, it has turned out to be an 'Annus Horribilis'."

Commemorations for this jubilee were low key.

Just like the Silver Jubilee, people crowded into the Mall to celebrate the Queen’s Golden Jubilee in 2002.

But the Buckingham Palace also hosted an unprecedented pop concert inside the grounds of Buckingham Palace for the Queen's 50th anniversary - the Party at the Palace.

More than 12,000 people watched Brian May, Sir Paul McCartney and Dame Edna Everage as the 76-year-old Queen watched on.

The Prince of Wales paid tribute to his mother on stage, called her "Mummy" and there was a finale of fireworks and a light show over the Palace.

The Queen became the second British monarch to reach her Diamond Jubilee in 2012- following in the footsteps of her ancestor Queen Victoria.

But for most of the festivities held in June to mark the head of state's 60 years on the throne, the Queen was forced to celebrate without the Duke of Edinburgh.

Philip was hospitalised with a bladder infection after enduring a wet and windy trip down the Thames during the Diamond Jubilee River Pageant.

More than 1,000 boats including kayaks, Dunkirk ships and dragon boats had taken part, and the Queen, the Duke and senior royals travelled on an ornate royal barge, watched by more than 1.25 million spectators who lined the river banks despite the rain.

Queen Elizabeth II: Style File - In pictures 28 show all Queen Elizabeth II: Style File - In pictures 1/28 1929 Queen Elizabeth as a child Glasshouse Images/Rex 2/28 August 21, 1930 Elizabeth and her sister, Princess Margaret AFP/Getty Images 3/28 1936 The Queen Mother holding Princess Margaret's hand as Princess Elizabeth follows Getty Images 4/28 April 21, 1940 Elizabeth picking daffodils on her 14th birthday in Windsor Park CSU Archives/Everett Collection/Rex 5/28 1947 Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten announce their engagement Everett Collection/Rex 6/28 20 Nov, 1947 Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip on their wedding day Everett Collection/Rex 7/28 June 2, 1953 Queen Elizabeth accompanied by Prince Philip waves to the crowd after being crowned solemnly at Westminter Abbey AFP/Getty Images 8/28 1960 Queen Elizabeth at Epsom Downs Racecourse for the Oaks Stakes, Surrey Getty Images 9/28 February 23, 1962 The Queen Mother and Queen Elizabeth II arrive at Windsor's Theatre Royal for a performance of G. B. Shaw's 'You Never Can Tell' AFP/Getty Images 10/28 July 1, 1977 Elizabeth presents the trophy to British tennis player Virginia Wade after she won the Women's Singles competition at Wimbledon Getty Images 11/28 June 11, 1992 Portrait taken in the city hall of Blois shows the Queen during her third official visit in France AFP/Getty Images 12/28 July 2, 1997 Elizabeth waves to a gathered crowd at the airport in Ottawa, Canada AFP/Getty Images 13/28 November 24, 1998 Queen Elizabeth leaves the House of Lords following her speech at the Opening of Parliament ceremony AFP/Getty Images 14/28 March 2, 2002 Elizabeth arrives to host the golden jubilee banquet for delegates of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting AFP/Getty Images 15/28 April 2, 2002 The queen riding at Windsor Castle AFP/Getty Images 16/28 June 3, 2002 Prince Charles kisses his mother's hand after congratulating her on stage at the end of 'Party at the Palace', part of Queen Elizabeth's Golden Jubilee celebrations AFP/Getty Images 17/28 November 19, 2004 Queen Elizabeth peers around a door to check the limousine awaiting for French President Jacques Chirac as they depart Windsor Castle AFP/Getty Images 18/28 May 15, 2008 Elizabeth visits Kabatas High School in Istanbul, Turkey Getty Images 19/28 May 17, 2008 Prince Harry kisses his grandmother AFP/Getty Images 20/28 October 26, 2010 i Queen Elizabeth II arrives to greet the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al Thani to her Windsor residence 21/28 April 29, 2011 Carole Middleton, Queen Elizabeth and Camilla share a joke following the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton Getty Images 22/28 May 19, 2011 Queen Elizabeth is pictured during a visit to the Irish National Stud in Kildare AFP/Getty Images 23/28 April 3, 2014 Queen Elizabeth, accompanied by Prince Philip, arrives at Ciampino airport near Rome AFP/Getty Images 24/28 September 9, 2015 Queen Elizabeth II smiles as she arrives at Tweedbank Station, Scotland, after becoming the longest reigning monarch in British history Getty Images 25/28 May 19, 2018 Queen Elizabeth II smiles after the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle 26/28 November 20, 2019 Getty Images 27/28 December 19, 2019 Queen Elizabeth II delivering the Queen's Speech at the State Opening of Parliament Getty Images 28/28 April 5, 2020 Over 23.5 million viewers watched the Queen’s 2020 Easter address to the nation BUCKINGHAM PALACE/AFP via Getty 1/28 1929 Queen Elizabeth as a child Glasshouse Images/Rex 2/28 August 21, 1930 Elizabeth and her sister, Princess Margaret AFP/Getty Images 3/28 1936 The Queen Mother holding Princess Margaret's hand as Princess Elizabeth follows Getty Images 4/28 April 21, 1940 Elizabeth picking daffodils on her 14th birthday in Windsor Park CSU Archives/Everett Collection/Rex 5/28 1947 Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten announce their engagement Everett Collection/Rex 6/28 20 Nov, 1947 Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip on their wedding day Everett Collection/Rex 7/28 June 2, 1953 Queen Elizabeth accompanied by Prince Philip waves to the crowd after being crowned solemnly at Westminter Abbey AFP/Getty Images 8/28 1960 Queen Elizabeth at Epsom Downs Racecourse for the Oaks Stakes, Surrey Getty Images 9/28 February 23, 1962 The Queen Mother and Queen Elizabeth II arrive at Windsor's Theatre Royal for a performance of G. B. Shaw's 'You Never Can Tell' AFP/Getty Images 10/28 July 1, 1977 Elizabeth presents the trophy to British tennis player Virginia Wade after she won the Women's Singles competition at Wimbledon Getty Images 11/28 June 11, 1992 Portrait taken in the city hall of Blois shows the Queen during her third official visit in France AFP/Getty Images 12/28 July 2, 1997 Elizabeth waves to a gathered crowd at the airport in Ottawa, Canada AFP/Getty Images 13/28 November 24, 1998 Queen Elizabeth leaves the House of Lords following her speech at the Opening of Parliament ceremony AFP/Getty Images 14/28 March 2, 2002 Elizabeth arrives to host the golden jubilee banquet for delegates of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting AFP/Getty Images 15/28 April 2, 2002 The queen riding at Windsor Castle AFP/Getty Images 16/28 June 3, 2002 Prince Charles kisses his mother's hand after congratulating her on stage at the end of 'Party at the Palace', part of Queen Elizabeth's Golden Jubilee celebrations AFP/Getty Images 17/28 November 19, 2004 Queen Elizabeth peers around a door to check the limousine awaiting for French President Jacques Chirac as they depart Windsor Castle AFP/Getty Images 18/28 May 15, 2008 Elizabeth visits Kabatas High School in Istanbul, Turkey Getty Images 19/28 May 17, 2008 Prince Harry kisses his grandmother AFP/Getty Images 20/28 October 26, 2010 i Queen Elizabeth II arrives to greet the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al Thani to her Windsor residence 21/28 April 29, 2011 Carole Middleton, Queen Elizabeth and Camilla share a joke following the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton Getty Images 22/28 May 19, 2011 Queen Elizabeth is pictured during a visit to the Irish National Stud in Kildare AFP/Getty Images 23/28 April 3, 2014 Queen Elizabeth, accompanied by Prince Philip, arrives at Ciampino airport near Rome AFP/Getty Images 24/28 September 9, 2015 Queen Elizabeth II smiles as she arrives at Tweedbank Station, Scotland, after becoming the longest reigning monarch in British history Getty Images 25/28 May 19, 2018 Queen Elizabeth II smiles after the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle 26/28 November 20, 2019 Getty Images 27/28 December 19, 2019 Queen Elizabeth II delivering the Queen's Speech at the State Opening of Parliament Getty Images 28/28 April 5, 2020 Over 23.5 million viewers watched the Queen’s 2020 Easter address to the nation BUCKINGHAM PALACE/AFP via Getty

The Queen also opened up the Palace gardens to thousands of picnickers, who were presented with special Jubilee hampers.

A pop concert - staged because of the success of the Golden Jubilee show - was held in front of the Palace as well-wishers descended on the Mall once again.

Take That's Gary Barlow brought in acts such as Stevie Wonder, Kylie Minogue, and a hula hooping Grace Jones dressed in a PVC leotard. But Philip missed both the concert and a service of thanksgiving.