Shirley Temple has died.

The former child actress passed away from natural causes at her home in Woodside, California yesterday (10.02.14) at the age of 85, her agent has confirmed.

Her family said in a statement: ''She was surrounded by her family and caregivers.

''We salute her for a life of remarkable achievements as an actor, as a diplomat, and... our beloved mother, grandmother [and] great-grandmother.''

Shirley landed her first movie role at the age of three and, in 1935, she became the youngest person to receive an Academy Award - a record she still holds - when she won a special juvenile Oscar aged just six.

She starred in over 43 films - including 'Bright Eyes', 'Stand Up and Cheer' and 'Curly Top' but struggled to maintain her cinematic career in adulthood and retired from movies in 1950, though she continued to work in television.

Following the end of her entertainment career, Shirley served as a U.S. ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia.

The actress married first husband John Agar - the father of her daughter Linda - in 1945 when she was just 17 years old, but they divorced four years later.

She went on to marry Charles Alden Black in 1950 and the couple had children Charles Jr.

and Lori together. The couple were married for 54 years until Charles passed away in August 2005 from complications from a bone marrow disease.