Queen Elizabeth II
Born on 21 April 1926, Princess Elizabeth was the first child of The Duke and Duchess of York, who later became George VI and Queen Elizabeth. Christened Elizabeth Alexandra Mary in the private chapel at Buckingham Palace, the young princess spent most of her early years enjoying a quiet family life with her parents and her sister, Princess Margaret.
When Princess Elizabeth’s grandfather George V died in 1936, her uncle came to the throne as Edward VIII. Before the end of the year, Edward VIII had abdicated and Princess Elizabeth’s father became George VI, meaning the young princess was now next in line to the throne. When her father died in 1952, she acceded to the throne at the age of 25.
In 2016, Queen Elizabeth II became the world’s longest-reigning living monarch, having already surpassed her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria’s reign to become the first British monarch to mark more than 63 years of service.
On 8 September 2022, Queen Elizabeth II died peacefully at Balmoral. From a young queen and a fairy-tale coronation to a pillar of strength in an ever-changing world, we shared in the highs and lows of Her Majesty’s incredible life and reign. From the change in your pocket to the special coins that commemorated Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation and jubilees, The Royal Mint is proud to have struck every UK coin of Her Majesty’s reign
Five Portraits
Throughout her remarkable reign, five definitive coinage portraits of Queen Elizabeth II appeared on the coinage of the United Kingdom.
Mary Gillick 1953 Portrait
New coins showing Her Majesty’s first coinage portrait were issued in 1953. They represented a fresh start following the Second World War, and announced a new Elizabethan era. Used on UK coins and the coinage of many Commonwealth countries, Gillick’s portrait shows Queen Elizabeth II looking youthful and optimistic.
1968 Arnold Machin RA Portrait
Although decimalisation did not take place until 1971, decimal coins entered circulation before then. In 1968, 5p and 10p pieces were introduced to replace the existing shillings and florins. To help the new coins stand out from the older currency, a new portrait of Queen Elizabeth II was commissioned for the coins. Designed by Arnold Machin RA, the new portrait showed Her Majesty wearing a tiara instead of a wreath. Like Gillick, Machin avoided using a ‘couped’ portrait, one cut off by the neck, which had been the norm on coins issued earlier in the century
1985 Raphael Maklouf Portrait
From 1985 to 1997, UK circulating coins featured a couped portrait by the sculptor Raphael Maklouf that shows Queen Elizabeth II wearing the royal diadem, which she normally wore on her way to and from the State Opening of Parliament. If you look closely, you can see the artist’s initials, ‘RDM’, at the bottom of Her Majesty’s neck. Maklouf included his middle initial, D for David, to ensure that his initials wouldn’t be seen as a reference to The Royal Mint.
1998 Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS Portrait
The fourth portrait is the work of the highly respected sculptor Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS. Invited to participate in a competition to design a new royal portrait in 1996, his work introduced a greater degree of realism to the design. On the release of the new effigy in early 1998, the design depicted a portrait of a subject that in the artist’s own words ‘… needed no flattery’
2015 Jody Clark Portrait
The last definitive coinage portrait of Queen Elizabeth II was unveiled in 2015. It is one of four portraits of Her Majesty that can be found in circulation in the UK today, the others including those created by Arnold Machin, Raphael Maklouf and Ian Rank-Broadley. In 2015, Jody Clark became the first designer from The Royal Mint to design a definitive royal coinage portrait in more than a century.
Mary Gillick 1953 Portrait
New coins showing Her Majesty’s first coinage portrait were issued in 1953. They represented a fresh start following the Second World War, and announced a new Elizabethan era. Used on UK coins and the coinage of many Commonwealth countries, Gillick’s portrait shows Queen Elizabeth II looking youthful and optimistic.
1968 Arnold Machin RA Portrait
Although decimalisation did not take place until 1971, decimal coins entered circulation before then. In 1968, 5p and 10p pieces were introduced to replace the existing shillings and florins. To help the new coins stand out from the older currency, a new portrait of Queen Elizabeth II was commissioned for the coins. Designed by Arnold Machin RA, the new portrait showed Her Majesty wearing a tiara instead of a wreath. Like Gillick, Machin avoided using a ‘couped’ portrait, one cut off by the neck, which had been the norm on coins issued earlier in the century
1985 Raphael Maklouf Portrait
From 1985 to 1997, UK circulating coins featured a couped portrait by the sculptor Raphael Maklouf that shows Queen Elizabeth II wearing the royal diadem, which she normally wore on her way to and from the State Opening of Parliament. If you look closely, you can see the artist’s initials, ‘RDM’, at the bottom of Her Majesty’s neck. Maklouf included his middle initial, D for David, to ensure that his initials wouldn’t be seen as a reference to The Royal Mint.
1998 Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS Portrait
The fourth portrait is the work of the highly respected sculptor Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS. Invited to participate in a competition to design a new royal portrait in 1996, his work introduced a greater degree of realism to the design. On the release of the new effigy in early 1998, the design depicted a portrait of a subject that in the artist’s own words ‘… needed no flattery’
2015 Jody Clark Portrait
The last definitive coinage portrait of Queen Elizabeth II was unveiled in 2015. It is one of four portraits of Her Majesty that can be found in circulation in the UK today, the others including those created by Arnold Machin, Raphael Maklouf and Ian Rank-Broadley. In 2015, Jody Clark became the first designer from The Royal Mint to design a definitive royal coinage portrait in more than a century.
