Elizabeth II

=== Accession and coronation ===
{{Main|Coronation of Elizabeth&nbsp;II}}
[[File:Queen Elizabeth II on her Coronation Day.jpg|thumb|alt=Elizabeth is seated and holds an orb and sceptre.|Coronation portrait by [[Cecil Beaton]], 1953]]
As George&nbsp;VI's health declined during 1951, Elizabeth frequently stood in for him at public events. When she visited Canada and [[Harry S. Truman]] in Washington, DC, in October 1951, her private secretary [[Martin Charteris]] carried a draft accession declaration in case the King died while she was on tour.{{Sfnm|ps=none|Brandreth|2004|1pp=240–241|Lacey|2002|2p=166|Pimlott|2001|3pp=169–172}} In early 1952, Elizabeth and Philip set out for a tour of Australia and New Zealand by way of the British colony of [[Kenya Colony|Kenya]]. On 6&nbsp;February, they had just returned to their Kenyan home, [[Sagana Lodge]], after a night spent at [[Treetops Hotel]], when word arrived of [[Death and state funeral of George VI|the death]] of Elizabeth's father. Philip broke the news to the new queen.{{Sfnm|ps=none|Brandreth|2004|1pp=245–247|Lacey|2002|2p=166|Pimlott|2001|3pp=173–176|Shawcross|2002|4p=16}} She chose to retain Elizabeth as her regnal name,{{Sfnm|ps=none|1a1=Bousfield|1a2=Toffoli|1y=2002|1p=72|Bradford|2002|2p=166|Pimlott|2001|3p=179|Shawcross|2002|4p=17}} and was therefore called Elizabeth&nbsp;II. The numeral offended some Scots, as she was the first Elizabeth to rule in Scotland.{{Sfn|ps=none|Mitchell|2003|page=113}} She was [[Proclamation of accession of Elizabeth II|proclaimed queen]] throughout her realms, and the royal party hastily returned to the United Kingdom.{{Sfn|ps=none|Pimlott|2001|pp=178–179}} Elizabeth and Philip moved into Buckingham Palace.{{Sfn|ps=none|Pimlott|2001|pp=186–187}}

With Elizabeth's accession, it seemed possible that the [[royal house]] would take her husband's name, in line with the custom for married women of the time. Lord Mountbatten advocated for ''House of Mountbatten'', and Philip suggested ''House of Edinburgh'', after his ducal title.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Soames |first=Emma |author-link=Emma Soames |date=1 June 2012 |title=Emma Soames: As Churchills we're proud to do our duty |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/history/9305749/Emma-Soames-As-Churchills-were-proud-to-do-our-duty.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120602100737/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/history/9305749/Emma-Soames-As-Churchills-were-proud-to-do-our-duty.html |archive-date=2 June 2012 |access-date=12 March 2019 |work=The Telegraph |location=London |mode=cs2}}</ref> The British prime minister, Winston Churchill, and Elizabeth's grandmother Queen Mary favoured the retention of the [[House of Windsor]]. Elizabeth issued a declaration on 9&nbsp;April 1952 that the royal house would continue to be ''Windsor''. Philip complained, "I am the only man in the country not allowed to give his name to his own children."{{Sfnm|ps=none|Bradford|2012|1p=80|Brandreth|2004|2pp=253–254|Lacey|2002|3pp=172–173|Pimlott|2001|4pp=183–185}} In 1960, the surname ''[[Mountbatten-Windsor]]'' was adopted for Philip and Elizabeth's male-line descendants who do not carry royal titles.{{Sfn|ps=none|Pimlott|2001|pp=297–298}}<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=41948 |date=5 February 1960 |page=1003 |supp=y |nolink=y |mode=cs2}}</ref>

Amid preparations for the coronation, Princess Margaret told her sister she wished to marry [[Peter Townsend (RAF officer)|Peter Townsend]], a divorcé 16 years Margaret's senior with two sons from his previous marriage. Elizabeth asked them to wait for a year; in the words of her [[Private Secretary to the Sovereign|private secretary]], "the Queen was naturally sympathetic towards the Princess, but I think she thought—she hoped—given time, the affair would peter out."{{Sfn|ps=none|Brandreth|2004|pp=269–271}} Senior politicians were against the match and the [[Church of England]] did not permit [[remarriage]] after divorce. If Margaret had contracted a [[civil marriage]], she would have been expected to renounce her [[right of succession]].{{Sfnm|ps=none|Brandreth|2004|1pp=269–271|Lacey|2002|2pp=193–194|Pimlott|2001|3pp=201, 236–238}} Margaret decided to abandon her plans with Townsend.{{Sfnm|ps=none|Bond|2006|1p=22|Brandreth|2004|2p=271|Lacey|2002|3p=194|Pimlott|2001|4p=238|Shawcross|2002|5p=146}} In 1960, she married [[Antony Armstrong-Jones]], who was created [[Earl of Snowdon]] the following year. They divorced in 1978; Margaret did not remarry.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Princess Margaret: Marriage and family |url=https://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/The%20House%20of%20Windsor%20from%201952/HRHPrincessMargaret/Marriageandfamily.aspx |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111106225052/https://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/The%20House%20of%20Windsor%20from%201952/HRHPrincessMargaret/Marriageandfamily.aspx |archive-date=6 November 2011 |access-date=8 September 2011 |publisher=Royal Household |mode=cs2}}</ref>

Despite [[Death and funeral of Mary of Teck|Queen Mary's death]] on 24&nbsp;March 1953, the coronation went ahead as planned on 2&nbsp;June, as Mary had requested.{{Sfn|ps=none|Bradford|2012|p=82}} The coronation ceremony in Westminster Abbey was televised for the first time, with the exception of the [[anointing]] and [[Eucharist|communion]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 May 2003 |title=50 facts about The Queen's Coronation |url=https://www.royal.uk/50-facts-about-queens-coronation-0 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210207234935/https://www.royal.uk/50-facts-about-queens-coronation-0 |archive-date=7 February 2021 |access-date=18 April 2016 |publisher=Royal Household |mode=cs2}}</ref>{{Efn|name=television|Television coverage of the coronation was instrumental in boosting the medium's popularity; the number of [[television licences in the United Kingdom]] doubled to 3{{Spaces}}million,{{Sfn|ps=none|Pimlott|2001|p=207}} and many of the more than 20{{Spaces}}million British viewers watched television for the first time in the homes of their friends or neighbours.{{Sfnm|ps=none|Briggs|1995|1pp=420&nbsp;{{Wikt-lang|en|ff.}}|Pimlott|2001|2p=207|Roberts|2000|3p=82}} In North America, almost 100{{Spaces}}million viewers watched recorded broadcasts.{{Sfn|ps=none|Lacey|2002|p=182}}}} On Elizabeth's instruction, [[Coronation gown of Elizabeth II|her coronation gown]] was embroidered with the [[floral emblem]]s of Commonwealth countries.{{Sfnm|ps=none|Lacey|2002|1p=190|Pimlott|2001|2pp=247–248}}