Queen Elizabeth II takes the crown

By The Data Team

A royal record is broken

SEPTEMBER 9th 2015 is Queen Elizabeth II’s 23,226th day on the British throne, a milestone which sees her supersede Queen Victoria—her great-great grandmother—as the country's longest-serving monarch. Both queens ascended the throne at a young age—Elizabeth was 25 years old, Victoria just 18—and faced no serious challenge to their power. Both reigns are remarkable for their duration, Victoria having reigned far longer than her two predecessors combined, and both queens' reigns eclipsing the four intervening monarchs put together. Each lengthy reign results in a limited run for successors to enjoy; Elizabeth's son and heir Charles, now 66 years old, is the longest-ever monarch-in-waiting. The next in line, Charles's son William, is already 33.