Royalty rules! Queen Elizabeth voted Britain's most powerful woman

She’s been in power for 60 years, has a personal net worth £310m and has now been voted the most powerful woman in Britain.

The 86-year-old monarch beat Home Secretary Theresa May and Ana Botin, CEO of Santander, UK to be the winner of the first ever women power list put together by BBC Radio 4′s Woman’s Hour.

The judging panel of the list included journalist Eve Pollard, Conservative MP Priti Patel, Labour peer Oona King and crime novelist Val McDermid.

Speaking about the list, Pollard said: “Most women on our list were judged to have power because they had reached a place where they have control – of policy, of direction, of influence, of staff. The panel, a democratic group, also felt that we should include some women who have what we describe as soft power – not hire and fire or innovative financial decisions, but the ability to transform the way we think about ourselves.”

The poll raised questions about why the Duchess of Cambridge didn’t make it to the list

Explaining the decision, Pollard said, “Inevitably, not everyone will agree with the 100 we have chosen. There are some omissions. For example, we had long debates about the Duchess of Cambridge. Is she influential? Hugely. Is she powerful? Not yet.”

The top 20 names in the Woman’s Hour powerlist

1. Her Majesty the Queen

2. Rt Hon Theresa May MP (home secretary)

3. Ana Botin (CEO, Santander UK)

4. Baroness Brenda Hale of Richmond (supreme court judge)

5. Elisabeth Murdoch (chairman, Shine Group)

6. Professor Dame Sally Davies (chief medical officer)

7. Justine Roberts and Carrie Longton (co-founders, Mumsnet)

8. Lady Justice Hallett (appeal court judge)

9. Angela Ahrendts (CEO, Burberry)

10. Dame Gail Rebuck (chairman and CEO, The Random House Group)

11. Frances O’Grady (general secretary, TUC)

12. Moya Greene (chief executive, Royal Mail)

13. JK Rowling (author and philanthropist)

14. Rt Hon Harriet Harman MP (deputy leader, Labour party)

15. Professor Dame Nancy Rothwell (president and vice-chancellor, University of Manchester)

16. Rosemary Squire (co-founder and co-chief executive, Ambassador Theatre Group)

17. Rt Hon Maria Miller MP (secretary of state for Culture, Media and Sport)

18. Sara Thornton (chief constable, Thames Valley police)

19. Ann Glover (chief scientific adviser to the European Commission)

20. Nicola Sturgeon MSP (deputy first minister of Scotland)