9 ways Queen Elizabeth modernized the monarchy, from televising her coronation to writing her first Instagram post

The Queen during her coronation in 1953, left, and at during a virtual engagement in 2021. Hulton Archive/Getty Images, The Royal Family Queen Elizabeth II died at the age of 96 at Balmoral Castle on September 8. The Queen was celebrated for her efforts to modernize the British monarchy.

She made history when her coronation was televised, and she wrote her first Instagram post in 2019. The Queen was the first and only female member of the royal family to enter the armed forces. Queen Elizabeth learning how to change a car wheel as an auxiliary officer of the British Army in 1945.

Roger Viollet/Getty ImagesAs Insider previously reported, the then-titled Princess Elizabeth had to beg her father, King George VI, to let her help out in the military effort during World War II when she was 18.  She joined the Women’s Auxiliary Territorial Service in England, where she drove military trucks and trained as a mechanic.  The Queen was the first female royal to join the armed services as a full-time active member, according to the royal family’s official website.

The Queen’s coronation was the first royal coronation to be televised. Queen Elizabeth at her coronation ceremony in 1953. Hulton Archive/Getty ImagesElizabeth II was crowned Queen on June 2, 1953, after the death of King George VI the year before.

The ceremony had some traditional elements; for example, it was held at Westminster Abbey, where royal coronations have taken place for the past 900 years, according to the royal family website.  However, the Queen also modernized the coronation by allowing it to be televised for the first time in history, according to the royal website. An estimated 27 million people in the UK watched the ceremony, and for most people, it was the first time they had watched a live event on television, the website added.

 Her Majesty invented the royal walkabout, forever changing the way the royals interact with the public. Queen Elizabeth meets fans during a walkabout for her Golden Jubilee in 2002. Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty ImagesThe royal family often meet and shake hands with members of the public before official events, which has come to be known as a “royal walkabout.

“However, the practice of royals meeting the public didn’t start until the Queen’s tour of New Zealand and Australia in 1970, Insider previously reported. The monarch decided to greet the crowd on foot, rather than by driving to her next destination.   The Queen allowed cameras to follow her family’s lives for a documentary that was later banned.

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip in a field with some highland cattle at Balmoral in 1972. Fox Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty ImagesThe Queen gave the world a glimpse into her life with the BBC One “Royal Family” documentary that aired in the UK in 1969. The monarch, Prince Philip, and their children allowed cameras to follow their daily lives over 18 months in 1968 and 1969, with the intention of appearing more relatable to a modern audience, Insider’s Libby Torres previously reported.

The documentary was shown on TV for the final time in 1972 after which it was banned by the Queen, the Independent reported, as it was said to have negatively affected public perception of the royals. “Some people say that this would open the floodgates, and therefore after that, all the sort of tabloid interest in them [would come after],” royal biographer Hugo Vickers said of the documentary in the ABC special “The Story of The Royals,” Harper’s Bazaar reported. The Queen wasn’t afraid to get in front of the camera again later in life.

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Harry star in a video promoting the Invictus Games in 2016. BBC NewsThe Queen appeared on TV a small handful of times during her reign, and many of these were for humorous segments. For example, she appeared alongside Daniel Craig in a video for the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics, and in 2016 she appeared with Prince Harry, former President Barack Obama, and Michelle Obama in a comedic video advertising the Invictus Games.

Her Majesty modernized the monarchy with the creation of the royal family website. A screengrab from the royal family’s website. The Royal Family.

The royal family website, which was originally named the British Monarchy website, was originally created in 1997 and revamped in 2001.  An updated version of the website was unveiled by the Queen in 2009, which included Google Maps integration, the royal diary of engagement, as well as integration with the royal family’s YouTube channel, according to a press release from February 2009. Today, the royal family’s website is used for sharing press releases, announcements, and biographies for various members of the royal family.

The Queen used Twitter to communicate with the British public. —The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) September 8, 2022As Insider previously reported, the royal family’s official Twitter account was created in 2009 with the handle @BritishMonarchy before being changed to @RoyalFamily. Over the years, it has been a major platform used by the Queen to share important news with the British public.

Twitter was also where the family first shared the news of Her Majesty’s death on September 8. The monarch also joined Instagram, writing her first post in 2019. Queen Elizabeth II at her Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June 2022.

Chris Jackson/Getty ImagesThe royal family joined Instagram in 2013, but Her Majesty didn’t write her first post until 2019.  On the official Royal Family account, she posted two photos of a letter written to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert from Charles Babbage, the world’s first computer engineer, displayed at London’s Science Museum. The Queen wrote in the caption it was “fitting” that these letters feature in her first Instagram post as a celebration of how far technology has come in recent years, and she signed the post “Elizabeth R,” her official signature as monarch.

The Queen made history with her first-ever royal engagement over video call during the pandemic. Queen Elizabeth holding a virtual engagement from Windsor Castle in October 2021. The Royal FamilyThe Queen held her first virtual engagement in June 2020 from Windsor Castle, during the Covid-19 pandemic when the public had to social distance.

The monarch and Princess Anne met with a group of carers for Carers’ Week. Her Majesty and the royal family continued to carry out virtual engagements as well as in-person engagements in 2021 and 2022. Read the original article on Insider.