10 June saw us celebrating Queen Elizabeth II’s birthday, but did you know that’s not when her actual birthday is?
21 April. That’s the date she was born on – the June date is simply an official commemoration. It is a long standing UK tradition that the monarch has an ‘official’ birthday – chosen so that it falls conveniently on one of the first three Saturdays in June, coinciding (hopefully!) with the sunny weather. Elizabeth II’s natural birthday, 21 April, happens to come a little too early in the year to be sure of good enough weather for a grand outdoor event.
The tradition stems from 1748, during King George II’s reign, over 250 years ago.
