Centenary of the birth of Queen Elizabeth II
By CAA | Monday, 2 February 2026
To celebrate the centenary since the birth of Queen Elizabeth II, the Mint released 2 coins: a silver 5 dollars 1oz silver proof coin and a 50 cents uncirculated coin.
Elizabeth Alexandra Mary was bron on April 21, 1926 (a week earlier than anticipated) at 2:40 am at her maternal grandfather's London home, 17 Bruton Street, in Mayfair. She had been delivered via Caesarean section—a detail that was unusually transparent for the era.
The commemorative design honours many facets of her life and legacy. The design incorporates The Royal Cypher of Her Majesty with a stylised St. Edward’s crown and the Auxiliary Territorial Service emblem representing her wartime service. Her deep personal passions are woven into the composition with motif of a horse and corgi, playing tribute to her lifelong love for equestrianism and companionship, while references to art and theatre celebrate her appreciation for culture.
The portrait of Queen Elizabeth II is surrounded with flowers – roses, lily of the valley (the Queen’s favourite), myrtle as symbol of love and loyalty and golden wattle as Australia’s national floral emblem.
Even though she was only third in line to the throne (behind her uncle Edward and her father Albert), the public was captivated (Baby Fever).
Despite a miserable, wet London morning, crowds gathered outside her grandparents’ home in Mayfair. People cheered every time a visitor arrived, including a discreet cheer for Queen Mary to avoid waking the sleeping infant.
Within hours, the house was flooded with sheaves of telegrams and flowers. Princess Mary was even spotted running up the steps with a bouquet of pink azaleas for the new mother.
Most people in 1926 assumed Elizabeth would live a relatively quiet life as a senior royal, much like the current Princess Charlotte. Everyone expected her uncle, the Prince of Wales (the future Edward VIII), to marry and have his own children, which would have pushed Elizabeth further down the line of succession.
When the name Elizabeth Alexandra Mary was finally announced, it was praised for honoring her mother, great-grandmother, and grandmother.
While the birth was front-page news, it was quickly overshadowed by the 1926 General Strike, which began just 12 days later.
Queen Elizabeth’s story is interwoven with Australia’s own. Her historic visit in 1954 captured the nation’s imagination, while her effigy appearing on our decimal coins from 1966, becoming a daily reminder of her enduring presence. Yet it was the Queen’s many passions that revealed the woman behind the Crown. Her wartime service with the Auxiliary Territorial Service reflected a sense of duty instilled from youth, that she carried throughout her reign. Equally, her support for the arts nurtured creativity and cultural expression across the Commonwealth for seven decades.
The Queen’s love of horses and corgis is well known, while family remained her greatest treasure as a mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. All these facets of an extraordinary life have been stunningly captured in these new commemorative coins.
