World leaders paid tribute to the longest-reigning British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, on Thursday as she begins a four-day Platinum Jubilee weekend, celebrating her seven decades as England’s queen.
President Joe Biden, who met the queen for the first time as president last year, was joined by first lady Jill Biden in a video message, praising the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom and the queen’s service to her country.
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“For 70 years, you have inspired people with your selfless devotion and service to people in the United Kingdom and its commonwealth, and throughout your reign, the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom have grown stronger and closer than ever,” the president said in the video message.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken called the queen an inspiration to the people of the U.S.
“Through our special relationship, common history, and shared values, we work together to uphold democracy, human rights, and the rule of law worldwide. Our countries collaborate closely on virtually every significant challenge and opportunity the world over precisely because we have no closer partner,” Blinken said in a press statement. “On behalf of the United States of America, I congratulate Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the people of the United Kingdom on the occasion of Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee and official birthday.”
The four-day celebration has been turned into a bank holiday and begins on the 70th anniversary of Elizabeth’s coronation in 1952. It also coincided with a military parade held every year in June, in honor of the monarch’s birthday.
French President Emmanuel Macron, who recently won reelection, took the praise a step further by presenting the queen with a horse, a passion of the queen’s.
“Times have changed, Europe has evolved, our continent is again experiencing war,” Macron said, according to the Daily Mail. “Throughout these transformations your devotion to our alliance and to our friendship has remained. ‘a lifetime of devotion’, Macron said the Queen had ‘shared our joys, and seen the deep affection and admiration that the people of France have for you. Celebrating you today is celebrating the sincere and deep friendship which unites our two countries.”
Macron added that the queen was greatly admired by people in France.
Other tributes to the queen came from former President Barack Obama, Australia’s newly elected Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who announced he will rename an island after the monarch, and Pope Francis.
“On the joyful occasion of Your Majesty’s birthday, and as you celebrate this Platinum Jubilee year, I send cordial greetings and good wishes, together with the renewed assurance of my prayers that Almighty God will bestow on you, the members of the Royal family and all the people of the nation blessings of unity, prosperity and peace,” the pope said, according to Reuters.
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The parade marked the start of the jubilee, which will continue through the end of Sunday. Other events planned for this weekend include the lighting of the principal beacon Thursday night, the service of Thanksgiving at St. Paul’s Cathedral on Friday, the Epsom Derby on Saturday, and the finale on Sunday night, which will conclude with a singing of the British national anthem, “God Save the Queen.”
The queen released a statement prior to Thursday’s festivities, thanking everyone who pitched in to celebrate the jubilee.
“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,” the queen said.
The queen’s schedule will depend on her health each day. Some appearances could be canceled up until her slated appearance, Buckingham Palace said. The 96-year-old queen has been battling several health issues since last fall, including surviving a case of COVID-19 in February and mobility problems, and had spent some time in the hospital.
