Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II: Difference between revisions
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===Celebrations outside of London=== |
===Celebrations outside of London=== |
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There were Golden Jubilee celebrations outside of London as well. Perhaps one of the |
There were Golden Jubilee celebrations outside of London as well. Perhaps one of the most moving was held in the United States. New York City lit the [[Empire State Building]] in purple and gold. |
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[[Buckingham Palace]] and New York City Mayor [[Michael Bloomberg]] said that it was a sign of saying thank you to the Queen for having the American national anthem played at Buckingham Palace after [[September 11, 2001]], as well as the support the people in Britain gave afterwards. It had been more than 10 years since the Empire State Building gave an honor to somebody not from the United States. The last time was when [[Nelson Mandela]] visited New York following his release from prison in 1990. There were also several events which were independently organised to celebrate the jubilee; for example, in June 2002 the Armed Forces of the United Kingdom staged a special parade for the Queen at Portsmouth, where she inspected a guard of honour. Also, the Queen hosted a banquet for all reigning European Kings and Queens (to most of whom she is related) and also gave a special dinner for all the Governors-General of the countries where she is Queen.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/2026783.stm] |
[[Buckingham Palace]] and New York City Mayor [[Michael Bloomberg]] said that it was a sign of saying thank you to the Queen for having the American national anthem played at Buckingham Palace after [[September 11, 2001]], as well as the support the people in Britain gave afterwards. It had been more than 10 years since the Empire State Building gave an honor to somebody not from the United States. The last time was when [[Nelson Mandela]] visited New York following his release from prison in 1990. There were also several events which were independently organised to celebrate the jubilee; for example, in June 2002 the Armed Forces of the United Kingdom staged a special parade for the Queen at Portsmouth, where she inspected a guard of honour. Also, the Queen hosted a banquet for all reigning European Kings and Queens (to most of whom she is related) and also gave a special dinner for all the Governors-General of the countries where she is Queen.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/2026783.stm] |
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Revision as of 01:49, 25 February 2006
The Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II marked the fiftieth anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession to the British throne, and was celebrated with large-scale events throughout London, the capital of the United Kingdom, in June of 2002. The official "Jubilee Days" were held to coincide with the Queen's Official Birthday. Unlike the Silver Jubilee in 1977, international goodwill trips were scheduled months in advance, and first started in February.
Most royal jubilees in the 20th century have been marked by a Fleet Review - there was to have been one for this jubilee, but it was cancelled on cost grounds (or, in a sense, postponed until 2005, and the International Fleet Review).
Spring goodwill trips
The first nation visited was Jamaica on 18 February; the royals had not made a trip to the country in eight years. This came at a particularly painful time for the royal family as it occurred just three days after the funeral of the Queen's sister, Princess Margaret. After two days in Jamaica, the Queen and her husband, Prince Philip, continued on to New Zealand, making stops in major cities such as Auckland, Christchurch, and Wellington. The Queen was then received in Adelaide on 27 February by Peter Hollingworth, for a five-day tour of Australia, visiting places in South Australia and Queensland.
It was on 3 March that the couple went back to London, and they were dealt another blow when the Queen Mother died on 30 March. In April, the Queen travelled to Parliament and received (and replied to) Loyal Addresses from both Houses of Parliament in Westminster Hall, which was attended by members of both Houses. Also in April, the Queen attended a dinner at 10 Downing Street for all her past Prime Ministers, including John Major, Baroness Thatcher, Sir Edward Heath and James Callahan; the dinner was hosted by Tony Blair. When goodwill visits resumed on 1 May, they were confined to the United Kingdom, and another international Jubilee visit did not take place until the couple's visit to Canada in October. Roughly two to three days were spent in each corner of England; the Queen and Prince Philip first stopped in Cornwall, Devon and Somerset before travelling to Tyne and Wear, then finally to Buckinghamshire and Berkshire. On 13 May, the couple were received in Northern Ireland, and visited such areas as County Fermanagh, Cookstown, and Omagh (the latter being the site of a notorious Irish Republican bombing in 1998).
Throughout much of mid-May, the Queen and Prince Philip spent time in London devoting much time to the promotion of the arts, attending the Chelsea Flower Show, dedicating the Queen's Gallery at Buckingham Palace, and attending a reception at the Royal Academy of Arts. On May 23, the Jubilee trips recommenced with a noteworthy six-day trip to Scotland (the longest span of time spent in any region of the UK). Scotland was a location of profound signficance to the royals, as it was the first part of the country visited during the 1977 Silver Jubilee, and it was where the largest crowds were recorded. Like the 1977 trip, the royals first stopped in Glasgow, and then traveled on to Edinburgh and Aberdeen.
June celebrations in London
The Queen and Prince Philip left Scotland on 29 May to make final preparations for the Jubilee Week, which would start on 1 June. On the night of 1 June, a "Prom at the Palace", showcasing highlights in classical music, was held at Buckingham Palace, the largest venue ever organised on the premises. 12,500 people were invited to attend, out of two million people who expressed interest by completing applications. Playing for the crowds were the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the BBC Symphony Chorus. Guest vocalists included Kiri Te Kanawa, Thomas Allen, Angela Gheorghiu and Roberto Alagna.
2 June was a Sunday, and as such, the Queen and Prince Philip attended Jubilee church services at St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle. The rest of the Queen's family were spread across the country on 2 June: Prince Charles and his sons William and Harry attended services at Swansea. Prince Edward and the Countess of Wessex attended services in Salisbury and later greeted crowds in the area as scheduled. Princess Anne was in Ayr at the time, and Prince Andrew was not in the country at the time; as President of the Football Association, he was attending a World Cup football match in Japan.
The events of 3 June culminated in a pop music concert in the evening at Buckingham Palace. The concert, called "Party at the Palace", showcased the achievements in pop music over the previous fifty years. The Queen and Prince Philip had spent the day touring Eton and Slough before returning to London in the afternoon. The Queen inaugurated the nationwide BBC Music Live Festival, in which over 200 cities and towns across the UK played the song "All You Need Is Love", followed by the ringing of church bells at 1pm. 3 June was the peak day of celebrations, and just like 7 June 1977, street parties were thrown across the country, although not on the grand scale seen during the previous Jubilee.
The concert was attended by all the members of the immediate royal family, including Prince Andrew, who returned from the World Cup matches in Japan. Among the headlining acts at the concert were Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, Cliff Richard and Tony Bennett. Paul McCartney ended the night with such numbers as "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" and "Hey Jude", which were performed before and after the Queen lit the National Beacon at the Victoria Memorial. The National Beacon was the last in a string of beacons to be lighted in a chain throughout the world, echoing Queen Victoria's own Golden Jubilee in 1887. 12,000 guests were allowed inside the grounds of Buckingham Palace for the concert, and an additional million people watched and listened to the festivities from The Mall. Queen guitarist Brian May played his arrangement of the national anthem on the roof.
On 4 June, the entire royal family attended the National Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral, followed by lunch at the Guildhall. Unlike the 1977 Jubilee, which proved to have a theme of unity, the Queen addressed the crowd and expressed pride at the Commonwealth's achievements, both during her reign as Queen and throughout time. The Queen was quoted as saying, "Gratitude, respect and pride, these words sum up how I feel about the people of this country and the Commonwealth - and what this Golden Jubilee means to me." [1]
The Jubilee Festival started procession in The Mall in the early afternoon. In addition to singers and musicians performing for the Queen, numerous floats were decorated and driven through The Mall, illustrating British life through the years of her reign, from the 1950s to the present day. The Festival was also notable for the presence of a Hells Angel named "Snob" (real name Alan Fisher), who led a procession of motorcycles through The Mall at the Queen's request.
At the end of the Festival, 5000 adults and children from the 54 Commonwealth nations marched in The Mall before the Queen, in their various national uniforms. The children in the Commonwealth procession presented a "rainbow of wishes" to the Queen, consisting of handwritten notes from schoolchildren from across the Commonwealth. Later in the day, the Queen and Prince Philip greeted crowds from the Palace Centre Room's balcony. More than a million people thronged The Mall and cheered HM The Queen and other members of the Family. The royals then viewed an air show consisting of every type of RAF aircraft in service. The Concorde and Red Arrows trailed behind the other aircraft, ending the air show.
Celebrations outside of London
There were Golden Jubilee celebrations outside of London as well. Perhaps one of the most moving was held in the United States. New York City lit the Empire State Building in purple and gold. Buckingham Palace and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said that it was a sign of saying thank you to the Queen for having the American national anthem played at Buckingham Palace after September 11, 2001, as well as the support the people in Britain gave afterwards. It had been more than 10 years since the Empire State Building gave an honor to somebody not from the United States. The last time was when Nelson Mandela visited New York following his release from prison in 1990. There were also several events which were independently organised to celebrate the jubilee; for example, in June 2002 the Armed Forces of the United Kingdom staged a special parade for the Queen at Portsmouth, where she inspected a guard of honour. Also, the Queen hosted a banquet for all reigning European Kings and Queens (to most of whom she is related) and also gave a special dinner for all the Governors-General of the countries where she is Queen.[2]
Summer and autumn goodwill trips
The Jubilee goodwill visits started again on 7 June, when the Queen and Prince Philip paid a visit to West Sussex. A three-day trip to Wales followed shortly thereafter, with the couple touring Anglesey, Llanelli, and Cardiff.
July also proved to be a busy month, with the Queen and Prince Philip making two-day trips to the West Midlands, Yorkshire (where the Queen visited the set of the soap opera Emmerdale) and the areas of Suffolk and Norfolk. Later in the month, a three-day goodwill trip was planned to Liverpool and Manchester, where the Queen opened the 2002 Commonwealth Games. The Queen closed out July by touring the East Midlands, and ended their exhaustive domestic trip by visiting Lancashire, where the highest number of people in England turned out for the Queen in 1977.
For twelve days in October, the Queen and Prince Philip visited Canada, making stops in Vancouver, Winnipeg, Toronto, Fredericton, Sussex, Moncton and Ottawa. The trip was also unique in that it was the first royal visit to Iqaluit since the territory of Nunavut was established.