“I declare before you that my whole life, whether long or short, will be dedicated to serving you” promised Elizabeth II, still a princess, when she fulfilled 16 years. This Thursday began the celebration festivities for the 7 decades on the throne of a monarch who has broken numerous records.
The festivities began with the march of more than 1,200 soldiers of the royal guard through central London, near Buckingham Palace, in the traditional Trooping the Color or “Parade of the Standard”, which usually commemorates the official birthday of the queen every year, although in 2019 and 2021 was canceled due to the pandemic.
The parade military, with musicians and horses, resumes a tradition that dates back more than 2 centuries. The event culminates with the royal family appearing on the palace balcony to greet the crowd and watch a flyby of military aircraft.
Queen of records
In these days of official celebrations , the British media take stock of the milestones of Elizabeth II, the long-lived monarch throughout her 7-decade reign. The figures are impressive and set records that will be difficult for her successors to break. As queen, she has visited more than 42 nations and made more than 150 visits to Commonwealth countries. The Daily Telegraph estimated that he would have traveled the equivalent of 42 around the world before stopping traveling abroad in November 2015, to the 89 years.
During his reign, he has participated in some 21,000 official acts, has approved by “royal assent” about 4, 13 bills and received numerous dignitaries at 112 State visits. Buckingham Palace has hosted more than 180 birthday parties. garden which have been attended by more than 1.5 million people.
Isabel II has met 14 prime ministers, from Winston Churchill (1952-1955) until Boris Johnson, who, in normally weekly audiences, have kept her informed of the main events of the moment. He has also met with of the 14 US presidents elected during his reign, from Harry Truman (1945 -1953) to Joe Biden.
The queen, head of the Anglican Church, is very religious and practicing, and has also met with 4 popes on an official visit: John XXIII, John Paul II, Benedict XVI and Francis. She was married for more than 21 years with Prince Philip, who passed away in April 2020, again a record for a British monarch. She has posed for more than 200 portraits, the first of them when she was 7 years old.
In 1996, Queen Elizabeth was the first British monarch to visit China. She was also the first British monarch to address the House of Representatives in Washington, on 16 May 1991. She sent the first email from her on 13 March 1955, during a visit to a research center of the Ministry of Defense . In 1997, she launched the first official Buckingham Palace website. In 2014 she sent her first tweet, and in 2019 her first Instagram post of hers.
She may interest you: