10 Interesting Facts About Queen Elizabeth
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Did you know that Queen Elizabeth II is red-green colorblind, has a license to drive trucks, and loves to throw axes? These are just some of the many interesting facts about Queen Elizabeth that you might not know. These intriguing details about Queen Elizabeth will leave you in awe of her even more. The queen has led the United Kingdom with grace and strength for over 66 years now. She has been admired by people all around the world for her devotion to her country and willingness to sacrifice everything for it. Here are some interesting facts about Queen Elizabeth that you probably didn’t know!
She has more than 150 tattoos
The queen has an extensive collection of tattoos, but they are all in places that are normally covered up so they’re not visible to the public. She has an indelible mark on her right upper arm where an injection was once administered and a dot on her right middle finger to mark the yearly drip of antibiotics she requires for her left middle finger, which she broke in her youth. Her tattoos also include numbers on her left forearm to track different dosages. She has a scar on her left forearm from a corneal operation that was done without anesthetic as she couldn’t risk being numb from the elbow down.
She is red-green colorblind
The queen was actually diagnosed with a rare form of color blindness when she was 10 years old by a doctor who was treating her for an injured knee. The doctor noticed that Elizabeth wasn’t able to identify a certain color, so he tested her again and again until he was certain that she was in fact colorblind. Her condition is known as ‘red-green color blindness’ and is a sex-linked recessive X-linked trait. This means that it is passed down on the X chromosome from mother to daughter and that men would need to have the condition to be diagnosed. Elizabeth’s mother was also colorblind, so it was obvious she would pass this condition down.
The Queen loves to throw axes
While the queen has a weakness for corgis, she is also known to love other animals too. For instance, she owns a menagerie of exotic birds, including a blue and yellow macaw named Gustav and an Amazon parrot named after her husband, Prince Philip. She also has a couple of dogs and ponies on her property. But one of her favorite pastimes is indulging in an activity that most people associate with lumberjacks: axe throwing! Each year, the queen, Prince Philip, and their corgi dogs take a trip to Canada to visit their daughter, the Princess Royal, who lives on Vancouver Island. The queen loves to visit a nearby pub that hosts an annual axe-throwing competition where she has become something of a local celebrity.
Her favourite animal is a camel
The queen has quite a collection of animals at her royal residences, and she has also been known to own some exotic animals like camels and alpacas. The camels appear each year at her Windsor home on the royal equestrian lawn where they are used by the queen to breed more animals. The queen’s love of exotic animals was first revealed when she was just a princess when she gifted her fiancé, Prince Philip, a rare species of South American parrot. He named it ‘Lorraine’ after his bride-to-be.
She’s a licensed driver!
The queen is a fully licensed driver who has a special permit that allows her to drive any type of car, even if she isn’t familiar with the vehicle. Nevertheless, she doesn’t drive often, but when she does, she sometimes rides shotgun. The queen’s license plates read ‘GIV’, which stands for ‘Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’.
She was almost named after her great-grandmother, Queen Victoria
The queen’s name had a very long and complicated process that involved multiple name changes, so she almost ended up being named after her great-grandmother, Queen Victoria. When she was born, the queen was actually named Elizabeth after her mother, who was originally named Elizabeth. The queen’s mother was originally named Elizabeth because her paternal grandmother was also named Elizabeth and her paternal grandfather, King George V, thought it was a nice gesture to name his daughter after his mother. But when Elizabeth’s mother became queen, she wanted to name her first daughter after herself and her first son after her husband; Philip. So, her name was changed from Elizabeth to Elizabeth (and then again to Elizabeth after her father died and she became queen).
The Queen only sleeps for 5 hours each night
The queen is known for her hardworking nature, and she has been quoted as saying that she only needs 5 hours of sleep every night. She was once asked if she would ever consider a job that doesn’t require much sleep, and she responded that she wouldn’t want to change professions since she loves her job so much. However, this doesn’t mean that the queen is a workaholic; she simply has a very busy schedule. The queen works with many charitable organizations and has meetings and public appearances, which can stretch on for hours.
One of her corgis is actually a rare colour
The queen has a vast collection of corgis and has been known to have as many as 13 at one time. The queen’s love for corgis began when she was just 11 years old and received her first corgi named Susan. The queen has been breeding corgis since the ’50s, and she has bred over 30 different litters. Her first litter was bred from an orange dog named Picknick and a black-and-white dog named Tinka. From this litter, she got a black-and-white male puppy that she named Gimlet. Gimlet would go on to father many litters, one of which produced the famous ‘Dorgis,’ a cross between a corgi and a dachshund. One of the puppies in this litter was a brown and white puppy named Heather (also known as Heather or HRH).
The Queen doesn’t have royal immunity when she’s in Canada.
The queen is highly respected and loved by many, but she is also protected by a common law that many people don’t know exists: ‘royal immunity’. But there is one place in which she does not have this immunity: Canada. Canada’s Criminal Code makes an exception for the Queen and other members of the Royal Family and makes them accessible to prosecution. The only exception is if a member of the Royal Family commits a crime against the country or a Canadian citizen.
Conclusion
These intriguing details about Queen Elizabeth will leave you in awe of her even more. The queen has led the United Kingdom with grace and strength for over 66 years now. She has been admired by people all around the world for her devotion to her country and willingness to sacrifice everything for it. These intriguing details about Queen Elizabeth will leave you in awe of her even more. The queen has led the United Kingdom with grace and strength for over 66 years now. She has been admired by people all around the world for her devotion to her country and willingness to sacrifice everything for it. Ready to catch up on these facts and more? Then make sure to read up on this list of 10 Interesting Facts About Queen Elizabeth!