Sacrifice. Honor. Commitment.
Princess Elizabeth turned 21 on April 21, 1947. She gave a speech that day while she was in southern Africa during a royal tour with her parents, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, and her sister, Margaret.
As the elder daughter of her father, Princess Elizabeth was the next in line to become the monarch of the United Kingdom and the countries of the Commonwealth. In her speech that day, Princess Elizabeth made a commitment that she has kept for the past 75 years. This was her commitment:
I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong.
During the first five of those years, she served as Princess Elizabeth. Here Princess Elizabeth visits with President Harry Truman in 1951.
Upon her father’s death in 1952, she began serving as Queen Elizabeth II, a role she has performed faithfully for 70 years. This year the Queen celebrates those 70 years with her Platinum Jubilee. She is still on the throne at age 95.
I’ve been learning about Queen Elizabeth’s life of service recently. I was already impressed with this remarkable lady. Now I am amazed.
Problems with her children and grandchildren make the news. I feel for this very public mother and grandmother. While news sources feed the public’s desire for gossip, this mother and grandmother grieves for her children and grandchildren, just as you and I would. What does not make the same news splash are the innumerable ways that this committed woman serves. During 70 years on the throne, Queen Elizabeth II has served her home country of the United Kingdom. She has founded and led numerous helping organizations. She has traveled across the globe and welcomed visitors from around the globe, including visits with every U.S. president except Lyndon Johnson.
Last night I searched for photographs of Queen Elizabeth II with U.S. presidents. These photos illustrate some of the many specific tasks that the queen performs. I could not find a photograph I had permission to use of Queen Elizabeth II with President Eisenhower, but here is a link to one online. It shows the Queen and the President at the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway between the U.S. and Canada. The Queen also met with Eisenhower’s vice president, Richard Nixon, during a visit Nixon made to London.
The Queen and her husband, Prince Philip, welcomed President and Mrs. Kennedy to Buckingham Palace in 1961.
President Richard Nixon visited the Queen at Buckingham Palace in 1969.
In 1970 President Richard Nixon and his wife visited the Queen at Chequers, the summer residence of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
In 1976 Queen Elizabeth II traveled to the United States to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. While she and Prince Philip visited President and Mrs. Ford at the White House, the Fords hosted them for a state dinner. The Queen danced with President Ford.
Prince Philip danced with First Lady Betty Ford.
Giving speeches is one of the Queen’s many duties. She gives President Ford a laugh during this speech at the state dinner in her honor.
The Queen has stood for thousands of hours in thousands of receiving lines. During her visit to the U.S. in 1976, she met famed baseball legend Willie Mays.
Jimmy Carter defeated President Ford in the 1976 presidential election. Carter visited the Queen at Buckingham Palace the following year. In this photograph, the Queen is dressed in a yellow gown. Standing beside her is her mother, who was also named Elizabeth. After Princess Elizabeth became queen, people referred to her mother as the Queen Mother or by the nickname, the Queen Mum. In this photo, President Carter holds the Queen Mother’s hand.
President Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan visited the Queen three times. Reagan was the first U.S. President to spend the night at Windsor Castle. Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip also visited the Reagans at their ranch in California.
President Reagan and Queen Elizabeth II enjoyed an hour of horseback riding, while the First Lady and the Prince rode in a horse-drawn carriage.
The Reagans welcomed the Queen and her husband to their ranch . . .
. . . on a rare rainy day in southern California.
Queen Elizabeth II made President Ronald Reagan laugh, too, during a speech in San Francisco, California.
The Queen particularly enjoyed seeing the Golden Gate Bridge from the royal yacht, Britannia.
President George H. W. Bush and his wife, Barbara, welcomed Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip to the White House in 1991, where they hosted the royal couple at a state dinner.
President Bill Clinton and his wife, Hillary, toured Buckingham Palace with Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip in November of 1995. Here is a link to a photo of that tour.
President George W. Bush and his wife, Barbara, hosted Queen Elizabeth II at a state dinner in 2007.
The Queen visited Jamestown, Virginia, during the 400th anniversary celebration of the founding of the first permanent English settlement in America.
In 2009 Queen Elizabeth II welcomed President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama to Buckingham Palace.
In 2018 she welcomed President Donald Trump and his wife Melania to Windsor Castle. In 2019 she hosted them at a State Banquet at Buckingham Palace.
The Queen hosted President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden at Windsor Castle in 2021.
Queen Elizabeth II lost her husband of 73 years in 2021. Prince Philip was 99 years old. Those close to the Queen have commented on how she has faithfully lived up to her life of service for so many years. Many give three reasons: her good health, her strong faith, and Prince Philip.
May we train children and grandchildren who will live lives of service, honor, and commitment and especially lives of strong faith. In her Christmas message for 2012, Queen Elizabeth II said that Christmas is a time of year when we remember that God sent His only Son to serve and not to be served. She encouraged her listeners to give God their hearts.
Jesus said:
“For even the Son of Man
did not come to be served,
but to serve,
and to give His life as a ransom for many.”
Mark 10:45
What an incredible example of selfless service! It is tragic that much of what makes “news” is whatever satisfies baser desires for gossip or what raises public ratings. Thank you, Charlene, for sharing with us the side of the story that gets overlooked.
Thank you for sharing these wonderful photos. I’ve always admired Queen Elizabeth and I envy her classy, elegant clothing! She has been an example of strong, yet humble womanhood for decades.