Royal Family shares an image of 2-year-old Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Elizabeth II, the oldest reigning monarch has retreated to Sandringham Estate in eastern England to privately celebrate her 96th birthday in style.

On Thursday, the Royal Family shared a never seen photo of Her Majesty as a toddler. The image is said to have been taken in 1928 when she was just a two-year-old Princess.

The black and white image is part of the Royal Collection Trust and shows the young Queen Elizabeth rocking blonde curly hair, with a dazzling smile as she cups her cheeks.

"Happy Birthday Your Majesty! Today as The Queen turns 96, we’re sharing this photograph of the young Princess Elizabeth aged 2. Then, in 1928, it was never expected she would be Queen," read the caption.

Never seen before image surfaces of Queen Elizabeth as she turns 96 Pulse Live Kenya

Queen Elizabeth II, first to celebrate Platinum Jubilee

The post further revealed that in marking her birthday, the Queen is the first British monarch in history to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee. A Platinum Jubilee is a celebration held to mark an anniversary. Among monarchies, it usually refers to the 70th anniversary.

Her Majesty marked the 70th anniversary of her accession on February 6, 2022. She was just 25 when she ascended to the throne and was the sixth woman in history to ascend to the British throne.

The Royal Family has this week been releasing a set of images to commemorate the Queen's big day with the former on Wednesday sharing an image of the latter wearing a dark green, cape-like coat sandwiched in between two white ponies.

The Queen is pictured with two of her fell ponies, Bybeck Katie and Bybeck Nightingale. (Photo by Royal Windsor Horse Show) Pulse Live Kenya

"Taken last month in the grounds of Windsor Castle, The Queen is pictured with two of her fell ponies, Bybeck Katie and Bybeck Nightingale," read the tweet in part.

Her love for horses is something she shared with her mother and she has been breeding and racing horses for more than 60 years.