Overview

The Queen Mother, supported by her daughters Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret, on her 93rd birthday

Born on the cusp of the 20th century, Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, can reflect on a lifetime of service, splendour, and some sadness.

The world has changed almost unrecognisably around her - - from her birth when Britain's empire spread across the planet to her 100th birthday when European countries are calling for closer and closer integration.

The Boer War was still being fought and the Wright brothers were yet to fly when she was born Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon.

She has seen a man on the moon, superpowers come and go, and helped steel the nation's resolve during World War II.

Now a great-grandmother of nine, the Queen Mother has in recent years watched the marriages of one daughter and three grandchildren collapse and deference to the Royals replaced by open debate over the future of the monarchy.

Propelled into the royal limelight by her brother-in-law Edward VIII's abdication, this gregarious woman is widely credited with making her shy, stammering husband the King he was.

Public duty

Duty was an intrinsic part of the Edwardian values she was brought up with and well into her nineties The Queen Mother was attending over 100 engagements a year.

Today she still manages about 25 and despite having had two hip replacements she often scorns the use of walking sticks and a "Queen Mother- mobile" golf cart.

A symbol of resistance during World War II, the Queen Mother continues to honour the memory of those lost.

While enjoying the trappings of her position with a large jewellery collection, a seemingly limitless supply of her favourite diaphanous outfits and well known for her generous entertaining, the Queen Mother brought a human touch to the institution, as she was able to talk comfortably with a wide cross-section of society..

Perhaps her most famous action was touring the blitz-devastated East End during World War II offering words of comfort to the bereaved and homeless, with the Royal Standard flying defiantly over Buckingham Palace.

For such steely resolve she was labelled the most dangerous woman in Europe by Adolf Hitler.

Half a century later she re-enacted the Royal Family's famous 1945 balcony appearance, leading the nation in the 50th anniversary celebration of VE (Victory in Europe) day.

Whatever the newspapers say about the younger generation of royals, the Queen Mother, in her pastels and pearls, has remained a popular public figure.

Each year crowds camp outside Clarence House, the London home where she lives cosseted in Edwardian splendour, to see, and maybe even talk with the "Nation's Favourite Grandmother", on her regular birthday walkabouts.

This year, like all the nation's centenarians, she awaits a telegram from the Queen which will read: "I send my warm congratulations and best wishes to you on celebrating your 100th birthday. I hope you have a wonderful day."

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