--- description: Queen Elizabeth II is one of the leaders, innovators, activists, entertainers, athletes and artists who defined the last century. title: Queen Elizabeth II: 100 Women of the Year image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd9c84839c7b15047/698a0af2457a522e84d639d3/social-1952_Queen-Elizabeth-II.jpg?branch=production --- * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # 1952: Queen Elizabeth II Mar 5, 2020 11:36 AM CUT  Boris Chaliapin for TIME by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 5, 2020 11:36 AM CUT When TIME named [Queen Elizabeth II](https://time.com/5298945/queen-elizabeth-princess/ "undefined") the [Woman of the Year](https://time.com/4138687/time-person-of-the-year-women-covers/ "undefined") in 1952, it was not for her gender but for what she symbolized. The 26-year-old [acceding to the throne](https://time.com/4019998/queen-elizabeth-ii-reign-began/ "undefined"), editors wrote, was a “fresh young blossom” whose citizens hoped she would be an “omen of a great future.” In fact, Elizabeth became Queen just as the dissolution of the British Empire sped up, with the loss of Egypt, Sudan and Ghana in the early years of her reign. Almost seven decades later, she oversees an island nation reduced to a bit player on the world stage. Yet at the age of 93, her soft power is undimmed; she draws [both ](https://time.com/5333083/queen-elizabeth-trump-visit-presidents/ "undefined")great [leaders](https://time.com/5333083/queen-elizabeth-trump-visit-presidents/ "undefined") and throngs of tourists to her state, and personifies British endurance untainted by politics. She has steered her family through scandal successfully enough that the next generation is poised to carry the crown forward. Unlike [her heirs](https://time.com/5238004/royal-family-tree/ "undefined"), however, she remains virtually unknowable, having never allowed the media access to her private thoughts or opinions. In her utter rejection of a public persona, she is best understood, still, as a symbol: no longer the potent florescence of youth, but a hard-worn tree in whose limbs and roots can be traced the archaeology of an era. _—Dan Stewart_ --- _This article is part of_ [_100 Women of the Year_](https://time.com/100-women-of-the-year/ "undefined")_, TIME’s list of the most influential women of the past century. Read more_ [_about the project_](https://time.com/5793734/time-100-women-of-the-year-issue/ "undefined")_, explore the_ [_100 covers_](https://time.com/5793732/time-100-women-of-the-year-covers/ "undefined") _and sign up for our_ [_Inside TIME newsletter_](https://cloud.newsletters.time.com/newsletters?newsletter%5Fname=INSIDE%5FTIME&source=article-woy-footer "undefined") _for more._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5793553/queen-elizabeth-ii-100-women-of-the-year/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5793553/queen-elizabeth-ii-100-women-of-the-year/"},"headline":"1952: Queen Elizabeth II","datePublished":"2020-03-05T11:36:07.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-24T08:20:51.389Z","description":"Queen Elizabeth II is one of the leaders, innovators, activists, entertainers, athletes and artists who defined the last century.","url":"https://time.com/5793553/queen-elizabeth-ii-100-women-of-the-year/","keywords":["Women of the Year"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd9c84839c7b15047/698a0af2457a522e84d639d3/social-1952_Queen-Elizabeth-II.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd9c84839c7b15047/698a0af2457a522e84d639d3/social-1952_Queen-Elizabeth-II.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"SOCIAL - Women of the Year: 1952_Queen-Elizabeth-II","caption":"","creditText":"","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5793553/queen-elizabeth-ii-100-women-of-the-year/","name":"1952: Queen Elizabeth II"}}]}] ```