Queen Elizabeth II and husband Prince Philip mark their platinum wedding anniversary on Monday 20 November 2017. The couple married at London's Westminster Abbey 70 years ago, just two years after the end of World War Two, in a glittering ceremony which attracted statesmen and royalty from around the world and huge crowds of cheering well-wishers.
Seventy years on, no public events are planned and Elizabeth, now 91, and her 96-year-old husband will celebrate the milestone with a private party at Windsor Castle. However, the Abbey itself will mark the occasion with a full peal of its bells involving 5,070 change of sequences, with the 70 reflecting the anniversary, which will last more than three hours. IBTimes UK looks back at the world's longest royal marriage.
9 July 1947: Princess Elizabeth, Philip Mountbatten, Queen Elizabeth (the future Queen Mother), King George VI and Princess Margaret pose in Buckingham Palace on the day the engagement of Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten was officially announcedAFP9 July 1947: Princess Elizabeth poses with Prince Philip in the state apartments at Buckingham Palace upon their engagementGetty20 November 1947: Princess Elizabeth and Philip, now the Duke of Edinburgh, smile after their wedding ceremony in Westminster AbbeyTopical Press Agency/Getty ImagesQueen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip after their wedding ceremony on 20 November 1947AFP/Getty Images17th October 1951: The Duke of Edinburgh dances with his wife, Princess Elizabeth, at a square dance held in their honour in Ottawa, by Governor General Viscount Alexander during their Canadian tour.Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images2 June 1953: Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip pose together after her coronationAFP2 June 1953: Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh wave to the crowds gathered outside Buckingham Palace after her coronation at Westminster AbbeyAFPThe royal couple hold their two children, Charles and Anne, at BalmoralAFP26 January 1961: The Queen and Prince Philip pose with the Maharaja and Maharani of Jaipur after a tiger shoot in Jaipur, IndiaAFP1965: The Queen and Prince Philip, with their children (left to right) Edward, Anne, Charles and Andrew, celebrate the Queen's 39th birthday at WindsorKeystone/Getty ImagesApril 1973: Prince Philip looks on as the Queen uses a camera at the Badminton Horse TrialsTim Graham/Getty Image1979: The Queen and Prince Philip go on safari during their state visit to ZambiaSerge Lemoine/Getty16 May 1982: The Queen and Prince Philip chat together at the Royal Windsor Horse ShowGetty Images4 August 1982: Princess Diana holds her baby son Prince William, while Prince Charles, Prince Philip, the Queen and the Queen Mother look on at Buckingham Palace after William's christening ceremonyReuters18 September 1982: Prince Andrew talks to his mother as his father looks on, aboard the air carrier HMS Invincible, upon his return from the Falklands war, where he served as a helicopter pilotAFP]October 1982: The Queen and Prince Philip visit the Solomon Islands during a tour of the South PacificAnwar Hussein/Getty Images13 June 1996: The Queen and Prince Philip attend the Beating the Retreat ceremony on Horseguards Parade in honour of his 75th birthdayReuters5 September 1997: The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh look at the mass of floral tributes laid outside Buckingham Palace in memory of Diana, Princess of WalesReuters6 September 1997: Prince Philip, Prince William, Earl Spencer, Prince Harry and Prince Charles walk outside Westminster Abbey during the funeral service for Diana, Princess of WalesGetty31 December 1999: The Duke of Edinburgh and the Queen toast the new millennium during celebrations at the Millennium Dome in LondonAFP16 June 2001: Queen Elizabeth II stands on the Buckingham Palace balcony with the Queen Mother, Prince Philip and Prince Charles for the Trooping the Colour ceremonyReuters5 April 2002: Prince Andrew, Prince Charles, Prince Philip, Princess Anne and Prince Edward walk behind the coffin of the Queen Mother during a ceremonial procession in LondonPool4 June 2002: The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh travel back to Buckingham Palace after the Golden Jubilee Service of Thanksgiving held at St Paul's Cathedral. Thousands of people gathered in central London for the festivities on the final day of the celebratory weekend marking the Queen's 50th year on the throneMurray Sanders/Pool4 December 2002: The Duke of Edinburgh stands next to a cartoon depicting the Queen as the landlady of the Old Vic from EastEnders, drawn by Trogg for the Golden JubileeAFP14 June 2003: The Queen smiles at the Duke of Edinburgh as they arrive for the annual Trooping the Colour Parade held to mark the the Queen's birthday in LondonReuters23 November 2004: The Queen and Prince Philip arrive for the state opening of Parliament in LondonIan Waldie/Getty Images9 April 2005: The Prince of Wales and his new bride Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, pose with Prince Harry, Prince William, Tom and Laura Parker Bowles, the Duke of Edinburgh, the Queen and Camilla's father Major Bruce Shand, in the White Drawing Room at Windsor Castle after their wedding ceremonyHugo Burnand/PoolAn official photo released to mark their diamond wedding anniversary on 19 November 2007 shows the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh taking a walk together at BroadlandsAFP26 March 2008: The Queen, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, his wife Carla Sarkozy-Bruni and the Duke of Edinburgh review a guard of review during a welcome ceremony at Windsor CastleAFP1 April 2009: US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle meet with the Queen and Prince Philip at Buckingham PalaceAFP18 November 2010: The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh wear 3D glasses to watch a display at the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research centreJohn Giles29 April 2011: Prince William and Kate Middleton pose in the Throne Room at Buckingham Palace with members of their families after their wedding. Front row: Grace van Cutsem, Eliza Lopes, Prince Philip, the Queen, Margarita Armstrong-Jones, Louise Windsor, William Lowther-Pinkerton. Back Row: Tom Pettifer, Camilla, Prince Charles, Prince Harry, Michael Middleton, Carole Middleton, James Middleton and Philippa MiddletonAFP18 May 2011: Prince Philip looks at a pint of Guinness at the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin during the first visit to Ireland by a British monarch since independence.Tony Maxwell3 September 2011: The Queen and Prince Philip attend the Braemar Gathering and Highland Games in ScotlandGetty27 December 2011: Prince Philip leaves Papworth Hospital in Cambridgeshire, four days after being rushed in for heart surgery and mising the royal family's Christmas celebrationsAFP13 June 2012: Kate Middleton laughs as the Queen gestures while they watch part of a children's sports event during a visit to Vernon Park in NottinghamPhil Noble/Reuters3 June 2012: The Queen chats to Prince Philip on the Spirit of Chartwell during the Diamond Jubilee River Pageant – an armada of 1,000 boats on the River ThamesJohn Stillwell9 June 2012: Prince Philip waves to members of the media as he leaves the King Edward VII Hospital in London on the eve of his 91st birthday, five days after he was taken ill during celebrations to mark the monarch's 60 years on the thronePaul Hackett/Reuters30 April 2013: The Queen smiles at Prince Philip during a ceremonial welcome for President of the United Arab Emirates, His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan in WindsorReuters8 May 2013: The Queen and Prince Philip leave the Palace of Westminster after the State Opening of ParliamentKirsty Wigglesworth11 April 2014: The Queen and Prince Philip laugh after bidding farewell to the President of Ireland Michael D Higgins and his wife Sabina at Windsor CastleLeon Neal/Getty Images13 March 2015: The Queen and Prince Philip hold hands as they leave after the Afghanistan service of commemoration at St Paul's Cathedral in LondonReuters22 April 2016: The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh stand with US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle in the Oak Room at Windsor Castle ahead of a private lunch hosted by the QueenJohn Stillwell15 May 2016: Prince Philip and other members of the royal family cover their ears during a gun salute on the final night of the Queen's 90th Birthday Celebrations at WindsorChris Jackson/Getty Images18 May 2016: The Queen and Prince Philip proceed through the Royal Gallery before the State Opening of Parliament in the House of Lords at the Palace of Westminster in LondonToby Melville/Reuters10 June 2016: The Queen and Prince Philip leave St Paul's Cathedral after a service of thanksgiving for her 90th birthdayPeter Nicholls/Reuters12 June 2016: The Queen and Prince Philip, plus Princes William and Harry and Kate Middleton wave to guests attending the Patron's Lunch on the Mall, an event to mark the Queen's 90th birthdayToby Melville/Reuters3 September 2016: The Queen and Prince Philip watch the sack race at the annual Braemar Highland Gathering in Braemar, ScotlandRussell Cheyne/Reuters3 November 2016: The Queen and Prince Philip bid farewell to Colombia's President Juan Manuel Santos and his wife Maria Clemencia de Santos following their state visit, at Buckingham PalaceStefan Wermuth/Reuters8 December 2016: The Queen stands with her husband Prince Philip, her son Prince Charles, his wife the Duchess of Cornwall , her grandson Prince William and his wife the Duchess of Cambridge, before the annual evening reception for members of the diplomatic corps at Buckingham PalaceDominic Lipinski11 April 2017: Prince Philip and the Queen feed Donna the elephant as they visit the ZSL Whipsnade Zoo in DunstableChris Jackson/Getty Images13 April 2017: The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh pose with Yeoman of the Guard following the Royal Maundy service at Leicester CathedralAnthony Devlin2 August 2017: Prince Philip, in his role as Captain General, Royal Marines, attends a parade at Buckingham Palace. This was the 96-year-old Duke of Edinburgh's final official engagement before retiring from active public lifeHannah McKay/Reuters12 July 2017: The Queen, Prince Philip, Spain's King Felipe and his wife Queen Letizia, pose for a group photograph before a State Banquet at Buckingham Palace in LondonMatt DunhamThe Queen and Prince Philip pose in the White Drawing Room at Windsor Castle in early November, against a platinum-textured backdrop, in celebration of their platinum wedding anniversary on 20 November 2017Matt Holyoak/CameraPress/Reuters
