Fashioning a reign

Rebecca Gonsalves explores Elizabeth II's on and off-duty style evolution

In Byzantine times, purple was considered the colour of royalty, the bold hue reserved for the powerful and wealthy. But our own Queen favours a far more contemporary and surprising shade entirely, choosing distinctive lime green for some of her most special public appearances.

As the longest-ruling monarch in UK history, the Queen provides an important link to a more traditional British society. But rather than being weighed down by her years of experience, she has managed to incorporate modern ideas into both her wardrobe and her 70-year rule.

The fact she has done so without sacrificing the steadfastness that is so important to the perception of British royalty both at home and abroad is a testament to the old adage 'fashion is fleeting, but style is eternal'.

SIGNATURE LOOK

Not only have fashions evolved throughout the Queen's record-breaking rule, but the way that images are spread around the globe has also changed from grainy black-and-white images in newspapers to high-definition flatscreen TVs, and the instant and inexorable scroll of images that make up social media.