obitoftheday:

Obit of the Day (Historical): King George VI (1952)

Obit of the Day cannot directly celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II - the limitations of a single-subject blog. Today, though, we use the back door.

On February 6, 1952 King George VI passed away at the age of 56. The second son of George V, he was never supposed to assume the throne but with the abdication of his brother King Edward VIII in order to marry American divorcée Wallis Simpson, George found himself the head of the world’s largest empire. He led the United Kingdom as its monarch for 15 years and two months, which included the outbreak of World War II in 1939* and the loss of India and Pakistan in 1947.

Upon his death, George’s eldest daughter Elizabeth was named queen. She assumed the throne immediately upon her father’s death (“The king is dead, long live the queen”), and has reigned for sixty years making her the second-most durable monarch in England’s history after Queen Victoria, who ruled for 63 years and 7 months (1837-1901).

(Image courtesy of wikimedia.org)

* The Academy Award-winning film The King’s Speech was based on the story of George VI, his speech impediment, and his first wartime radio broadcast.

• 3 months ago

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   is so relevant in many aspects...my life. And it made me love King

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   I never got around

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