Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
By DANICA KIRKA and JILL LAWLESS - Associated Press
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
Jonathan Brady - pool, Pool PA
From left, Prince George, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, leave Buckingham Palace for the Trooping the Color ceremony at Horse Guards Parade in London, Wednesday, June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Jonathan Brady - pool, Pool PA
From left, Prince George, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, leave Buckingham Palace for the Trooping the Color ceremony at Horse Guards Parade in London, Wednesday, June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
Stefan Rousseau - foreign subscriber, PA
Crowds gather near Trafalgar Square in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Stefan Rousseau - foreign subscriber, PA
Crowds gather near Trafalgar Square in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
Owen Humphreys - foreign subscriber, PA
Royalist Anita Atkinson, who has collected more than 12,000 items of memorabilia on her way to a tea party in Durham, England, Thursday, June 2, 2022 on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Owen Humphreys - foreign subscriber, PA
Royalist Anita Atkinson, who has collected more than 12,000 items of memorabilia on her way to a tea party in Durham, England, Thursday, June 2, 2022 on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Royal fans sing the national anthem as they gather along the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Royal fans sing the national anthem as they gather along the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
David Cliff - stringer, AP
A handful of workers walk down the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
David Cliff - stringer, AP
A handful of workers walk down the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Royal fans gather along the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Royal fans gather along the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
David Cliff - stringer, AP
A young royal fan smiles as she stands alongside the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
David Cliff - stringer, AP
A young royal fan smiles as she stands alongside the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Royal fans gather along the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Royal fans gather along the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Royal fans take a selfie as they stand alongside the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Royal fans take a selfie as they stand alongside the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
Mark Mitchell - handout one time use, Mark Mitchell/NZME
The Royal Regiment of New Zealand Artillery, using four 25-pounder guns, react during their 21-gun salute at Point Jerningham, to mark the 70th anniversary of the coronation of the Queen, Elizabeth II, in Wellington, New Zealand, Thursday, June 2, 2022.
Mark Mitchell - handout one time use, Mark Mitchell/NZME
The Royal Regiment of New Zealand Artillery, using four 25-pounder guns, react during their 21-gun salute at Point Jerningham, to mark the 70th anniversary of the coronation of the Queen, Elizabeth II, in Wellington, New Zealand, Thursday, June 2, 2022.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Royal fans walk alongside the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Royal fans walk alongside the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Royal fans gather along the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Royal fans gather along the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Royal fans have Union flag transfers applied to their faces as they gather along the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Royal fans have Union flag transfers applied to their faces as they gather along the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
Hannah McKay - pool, Pool Reuters
A police officer stands looking down The Mall to Admiralty Arch in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Hannah McKay - pool, Pool Reuters
A police officer stands looking down The Mall to Admiralty Arch in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
Dominic Lipinski - foreign subscriber, PA
Scenes on The Mall as the Royal Procession prepares to leave Buckingham Palace for the Trooping the Color ceremony at Horse Guards Parade, central London, Thursday, June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Dominic Lipinski - foreign subscriber, PA
Scenes on The Mall as the Royal Procession prepares to leave Buckingham Palace for the Trooping the Color ceremony at Horse Guards Parade, central London, Thursday, June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, ride in a carriage down the Mall for the Trooping the Color ceremony at Horse Guards Parade in London, Wednesday, June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, ride in a carriage down the Mall for the Trooping the Color ceremony at Horse Guards Parade in London, Wednesday, June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
Paul Ellis - pool, Pool AFP
Prince Charles, right, in his role as Colonel of the Welsh Guards, Prince William, center, in his role as Colonel of the Irish Guards, and Princess Anne, second left, in her role as Colonel of the Blues ride their horses along The Mall during the Trooping the Color in London, Wednesday, June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Paul Ellis - pool, Pool AFP
Prince Charles, right, in his role as Colonel of the Welsh Guards, Prince William, center, in his role as Colonel of the Irish Guards, and Princess Anne, second left, in her role as Colonel of the Blues ride their horses along The Mall during the Trooping the Color in London, Wednesday, June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Police officers remove a man who ran into the path of the royal procession on The Mall, London, ahead of the Trooping the Color ceremony in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Police officers remove a man who ran into the path of the royal procession on The Mall, London, ahead of the Trooping the Color ceremony in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Police officers remove a man who ran into the path of the royal procession on The Mall, London, ahead of the Trooping the Color ceremony in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
David Cliff - stringer, AP
Police officers remove a man who ran into the path of the royal procession on The Mall, London, ahead of the Trooping the Color ceremony in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
Dominic Lipinski - foreign subscriber, PA
Police officers remove people who ran into the path of the royal procession on The Mall, London, Thursday, June 2, 2022 ahead of the Trooping the Color ceremony, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Dominic Lipinski - foreign subscriber, PA
Police officers remove people who ran into the path of the royal procession on The Mall, London, Thursday, June 2, 2022 ahead of the Trooping the Color ceremony, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
Richard Pohle - pool, Pool Times Newspapers Ltd
The Kings troop of the royal horse artillery ride down the Mall on their way to fire ceremonial gun in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
Richard Pohle - pool, Pool Times Newspapers Ltd
The Kings troop of the royal horse artillery ride down the Mall on their way to fire ceremonial gun in London, Thursday June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch's 70 years of service.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee kicks off with pomp
Jonathan Brady - pool, Pool PA
From left, Prince George, Prince Louis and Princess Charlotte leave Buckingham Palace for the Trooping the Color ceremony at Horse Guards Parade in London, Wednesday, June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
Jonathan Brady - pool, Pool PA
From left, Prince George, Prince Louis and Princess Charlotte leave Buckingham Palace for the Trooping the Color ceremony at Horse Guards Parade in London, Wednesday, June 2, 2022, on the first of four days of celebrations to mark the Platinum Jubilee. The events over a long holiday weekend in the U.K. are meant to celebrate the monarch’s 70 years of service.
LONDON (AP) — Four days of celebrations honoring Queen Elizabeth II’s 70 years on the throne got underway Thursday with a display of British military traditions stretching from the days of horse and cannon to the jet age.
Formal celebrations for the Platinum Jubilee began with Trooping the Color, an annual military review that has marked the sovereign’s official birthday since 1760. The queen is expected to join the working members of her family on the balcony of Buckingham Palace at the end of the event, when 70 aircraft are set to roar overhead.
The jubilee is being commemorated with a four-day holiday weekend. The celebration of Elizabeth’s reign includes a service of thanksgiving Friday at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, a concert at Buckingham Palace on Saturday and a pageant staged by thousands of performers drawn from schools and community groups around the country on Sunday afternoon.
Throughout the weekend, neighborhood organizations and individuals are expected to hold thousands of street parties around the country, repeating a tradition that began with the queen’s coronation in 1953.
The 96-year-old queen is Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and the first to reach the milestone of seven decades on the throne. The jubilee is giving many people — even those often indifferent to the monarchy — a chance to reflect on the state of the nation and the huge changes that have taken place during her reign.
Former Prime Minister John Major — one of the 14 prime ministers of the queen’s reign — said the monarch’s stoic presence had helped steer the country over the decades,
“The queen has represented our better selves for over 70 years,” he told the BBC.
In a written jubilee message, the queen thanked people in Britain and across the Commonwealth involved in organizing the celebrations. For many, the occasion is the first opportunity for a big bash since the start of the coronavirus pandemic more than two years ago.
“I know that many happy memories will be created at these festive occasions,” Elizabeth said.
“I continue to be inspired by the goodwill shown to me, and hope that the coming days will provide an opportunity to reflect on all that has been achieved during the last 70 years, as we look to the future with confidence and enthusiasm,” she said.
Congratulations arrived from world leaders. French President Emmanuel Macron called Elizabeth “the golden thread that binds our two countries” and one of “very few constants” on the international stage.
“You are our friend, such a close ally, our example of service to others,” Macron told the queen in an English-language video message.
The name of the long weekend’s first event, Trooping the Color, refers to a regimental flag, or “color,” that is trooped through the ranks. Britain’s annual tradition for the queen’s birthday is a ceremonial reenactment of the way battle flags were once shown to soldiers to make sure they would recognize a crucial rallying point if they became disoriented in combat.
The troops taking part come from the army’s Household Division, composed of the seven regiments that perform ceremonial duties for the queen. Their members are fully trained soldiers and often deployed overseas when not on ceremonial duty.
Each year a different unit has the honor of trooping its color. The 1st Battalion of the Irish Guards will have the spotlight during the Platinum Jubilee.
Thousands of people, some of whom camped overnight, lined the parade route — many of them sporting Union Jack flags, party hats or plastic tiaras.
Carly Martin, who caught a late-night bus from south London with her daughter, said she had come “to make memories.”
“You’re never going to see this again in your lifetime,” she said. “At least not in mine, maybe not in my daughter’s. … Seventy years — it is all I have ever known.”
Several protesters were arrested after getting past barriers and onto the parade route. The group Animal Rebellion claimed responsibility, saying the protesters were “demanding that royal land is reclaimed.”
Cheers and the clop of hooves rang out as horse-drawn carriages carried members of the royal family, including Prince William’s wife, Kate, and their children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, from Buckingham Palace to Horse Guards Parade, a ceremonial parade ground about 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) away.
The queen is expected to appear twice on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, but Prince Charles is playing play a key role during the event. Mounted on horseback, he will take the salute from ranks of scarlet-clad Guards on his mother’s behalf, along with his sister, Princess Anne, and his son Prince William.
Elizabeth has had trouble getting around of late, and her courtiers have been careful to keep make things as simple for her as possible.
Senior royals including Prince Charles’ wife, Camilla, traveled in carriages to watch the ceremony from a building overlooking the parade ground.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will join other royals to watch the spectacle. Harry and Meghan have traveled from their home in California to take part in the celebrations.
