Today in history: The Queen's first email

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Today marks a special day in the Royal calendar. Or in the IT calendar at the very least. For it’s on this day more than three decades ago that Her Majesty the Queen sent her first email.

Back on March 26 1976, the monarch sent the message while visiting the Ministry of Defence’s scientific research hub the Royal Signals and Radar Establishment.

It is widely speculated that the Queen also uses email to keep in touch with family and friends. Indeed, just under a year ago, the Telegraph newspaper detailed the advent of Ma’am’s first email account.

“The 81-year-old monarch, already the proud owner of a mobile phone and an iPod mini, revealed her aquisition of an email address at a recent party for the Household Cavalry,” claimed the article.

“At the end of an animated conversation between the Queen and Elizabeth Saltzman, editor of Vanity Fair, the journalist said: "Look, we must keep in touch". "Absolutely!" agreed the monarch. "Here, let me give you my email address."

"Good lord, you use email?" replied a stunned Saltzman. "Oh yes," continued the Queen. "But I don’t actually write them - I dictate them all, of course."”

Last month, the Queen also dipped her toes – albeit by proxy – into the world of social networking as it emerged that officials from Westminster Abbey planned to tweet during a ceremony to mark the 60th anniversary of the Commonwealth.

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