Queen celebrates 60 years on British throne

Queen Elizabeth II celebrates 60 years of service to the British nation and Commonwealth today — her diamond jubilee.

For six decades the monarch has been an enduring figure as head of state.

February 6 — Accession Day — will be celebrated simply with a visit to King’s Lynn Town Hall and the nearby Dersingham Infant and Nursery School.

Crowds are expected to gather despite the cold conditions to greet the Queen, who will share the celebrations of one of the most important days of her reign with ordinary people.

The other side of the Queen is represented by two official diamond jubilee photographs released today, showing the monarch looking relaxed yet regal, dressed in a lavish gown with glittering jewels.

Her 60 years as queen will be marked by a series of regional, national and international events during 2012, culminating in a four-day Bank Holiday weekend in June.

A spectacular River Thames pageant, featuring a 1,000-strong flotilla, and a St Paul’s Cathedral service of thanksgiving are some of the highlights of the weekend.

Historians are likely to see the Queen as having a foot in both the past, with its traditions and customs, and the present, with which she still consciously engages.

She also has a personal side as her family’s matriarch and is a wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother.

Britain’s head of state already has the status of being the longest serving monarch after Queen Victoria.

And like her great-great-grandmother, who reigned for more than 63 years, her many years on the throne have helped define an era.