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10 Pictures that take you inside the Queen's visits to India

Prince Phillip and Queen Elizabeth visited India several times, meeting with heads of state and touring the country's most-loved historical sites

Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip 's first visit to India was in 1961, where the royal couple was greeted by both heads of the Indian state. During their trip, the monarch and her consort took a tour of India's most-loved monuments, including the Taj Mahal. During Prince Phillip's lifetime, the two visited India three times: in 1961, 1983 and in 1997—the year the couple visited India to mark the republic's fiftieth anniversary of independence from British rule.

During their first visit, the Queen and Prince Phillip toured Mumbai (then Bombay), Jaipur, Agra, Calcutta and Chennai (then Madras). In Jaipur, the Maharaja of Jaipur hosted the royal couple for a round of hunting, and they were also the guests of honour for that year's Republic Day parade. The people of India came out in record numbers to witness this historic tour, lining the streets to watch the royal processions.

Look through a gallery of historic images that give us a glimpse into Queen Elizabeth II's tours of India, and the many people and places she visited while here.

Queen Elizabeth II with President Rajendra Prasad (1884 - 1963) and Prince Philip on the occasion of the President's reception at Rashtrapati Bhavan in Delhi following the Republic Day Parade (1961)

Queen Elizabeth II riding an elephant in Benares during a tour of India (1961)

Queen Elizabeth II shares a joke with husband Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh and Indian Prime Minister Pandit Nehru (1889 - 1964) during a National Cadet Corps rally in New Delhi (1961)

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh visiting the Taj Mahal during their six week royal visit to India  (1961)

 Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip visit the shrine of Mahatma Gandhi in New Delhi (1961)

Queen Elizabeth II meets Prime Minister Indira Gandhi at Hyderabad House in New Delhi (1983)

Queen Elizabeth II at Hyderabad House in New Delhi (1983)

Queen Elizabeth II presents the Order of Merit to Mother Teresa at the Presidential Palace in New Delhi (1983)

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When the Queen came calling: Elizabeth’s three visits to India

During her reign she undertook three state visits to india, in 1961, 1983, and 1997. the queen and her royal consort, prince philip, the duke of edinburgh, first visited india in january 1961, the first royal british tour of india in 50 years..

Queen Elizabeth II, the head of state of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and Britain’s longest serving monarch died at the age of 96 on Thursday (September 8), after holding the throne for nearly 70 years.

After her father, King George VI died in 1952, Elizabeth ascended to the throne five years after India attained independence from colonial rule, becoming the first British ruler to take the throne after the empire lost its ‘jewel in the crown’. During her reign she undertook three state visits to India, in 1961, 1983, and 1997.

First visit: 1961

The Queen and her royal consort, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, first visited India in January 1961, the first royal British tour of India in 50 years. According to newspapers cited by the BBC, people were so excited to catch a glimpse of her during the visit, that nearly a million people thronged the route that took her from the airport to the official residence of the President of India, Dr Rajendra Prasad, in New Delhi.

The royal couple toured Bombay ( Mumbai ), Madras (Chennai), and Calcutta ( Kolkata ), and also visited the Taj Mahal in Agra and the Pink Palace in Rajasthan . She paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at Raj Ghat in New Delhi.

President Dr Rajendra Prasad invited them as Guests of Honour for the Republic Day parade on January 26 of that year, and the Queen addressed thousands of people at a meeting in Delhi’s Ramlila Ground.

Second visit: 1983

Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip’s next royal visit took place nearly two decades later, upon the invitation of President Giani Zail Singh, and they stayed at the visitors’ suite of the Rashtrapati Bhavan. According to a newspaper cited by the BBC, the Indian furnishings were replaced with Viceregal decor for the visit, and old Western style dishes were prepared for her, since the Queen was said to like “simple meals”.

Her royal visit was at the same time as the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) hosted by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. During her visit, the Queen famously presented Mother Teresa — now Saint Teresa of Calcutta — with the honorary Order of Merit, an extremely exclusive reward that is only limited to 42 living members at one time, for her service to humanity.

Third visit: 1997

Her final and third royal visit to India in October 1997 was to mark the golden jubilee celebrations of India’s Independence. During her stay, Queen Elizabeth touched on the violence unleashed by British colonial rule in India. “It is no secret that there have been some difficult episodes in our past. Jallianwala Bagh is a distressing example,” she said in her banquet address.

Amidst the calls for an apology for the killing of thousands of peaceful protesters upon the orders of General Reginald Dyer for protesting against the Rowlatt Act in 1919, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip visited Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar and placed a wreath at the memorial.

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While her speech and visit did not satisfy those who had called for an explicit apology, the BBC reported that it seemed to appease the relatives of those who were killed, who had planned a protest at the Amritsar airport during her arrival. The Queen was allowed to enter the Golden Temple after taking off her shoes

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Queen Elizabeth II made 3 visits to India, admired country's richness, diversity

In 1961, the queen and her husband, the late prince phillip – duke of edinburgh, toured mumbai, chennai and kolkata..

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Queen Elizabeth II, who died aged 96 on Thursday, was the first British monarch to accede to the throne after India’s Independence from colonial rule in 1952 and admired the “richness and diversity” of India where she made three State Visits over the course of her reign in 1961, 1983 and 1997.

“The warmth and hospitality of the Indian people, and the richness and diversity of India itself have been an inspiration to all of us,” she said in one of her addresses.

In 1961, the Queen and her husband, the late Prince Phillip Duke of Edinburgh, toured Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata then Bombay, Madras, and Calcutta and also visited the Taj Mahal in Agra and paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at Raj Ghat in New Delhi.

They were Guests of Honour at the Republic Day Parade on the invitation of the then President, Dr Rajendra Prasad, and an enduring image from the tour shows the Queen addressing a massive crowd of several thousand people packed into Ramlila Grounds in Delhi for her address, dressed in a fur coat and hat.

In 1983, her visit was in time for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) and she famously presented Mother Teresa with an honorary Order of the Merit. Her final visit to India was to mark the 50th anniversary celebrations of India’s Independence and for the first time she made a reference to “difficult episodes” of colonial history.

“It is no secret that there have been some difficult episodes in our past. Jallianwala Bagh is a distressing example,” the monarch noted in her banquet address.

ALSO READ| ‘70 years on the throne ’When The Queen Visited India

She and her husband later paid a visit to the scene of the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar to place a wreath at the memorial, amid widespread calls for an apology for the thousands killed at the orders of a British General during the Raj era.

Over the years, the Queen has also hosted three Indian presidents Dr Radhakrishnan in 1963, R. Venkataraman in 1990 and Pratibha Patil in 2009.

“Britain and India have a long-shared history which today is a source of great strength in building a new partnership fit for this new century,” the Queen said in her State Banquet address for President Patil at Buckingham Palace.

“Nearly 2 million of our own citizens are tied by descent and enduring family links to India. They represent one of the United Kingdom’s most dynamic and successful communities relations between our two countries are built on strong and deep foundations, and are set fair for the 21st century,” she said.

The Queen’s death triggers what is dubbed in Britain’s royal circles as Operation London Bridge or the formal preparations and protocol that kicks in following the death of the monarch with Operation Spring Tide, or the accession of her son and heir Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, to the throne.

ALSO READ| From the India Today archives (1983) | Royal roundabout: When Queen Elizabeth II came visiting India

As the Queen died at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, Operation Unicorn has also kicked in which involves her body being transported to London by train.

“The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon,” Buckingham Palace said in a statement on Thursday.

“The King and the Queen Consort [Charles and Camilla] will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow [Friday],” the statement said.

“London Bridge is down” is allegedly the way in which the death of the monarch would have been communicated to the Prime Minister, Liz Truss, by the Queen’s Private Secretary, who will also tell the Cabinet Secretary and the Privy Council of senior officials and ministers.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) Global Response Centre is responsible for informing governments outside the UK where she is Head of State, followed by other Commonwealth nations including India. The day of her death is referred to as D-Day, with each subsequent day a countdown until the funeral, expected 10 days after her death.

It comes just days after she appointed her 15th Prime Minister, Liz Truss, at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, where she had been staying for her summer break. It marked a historic first for a British Prime Minister to not be anointed at Buckingham Palace in London after it was decided the journey would be avoided for the monarch, who has been suffering some mobility issues since last year and has been using a walking stick.

The UK had celebrated the Platinum Jubilee of its longest serving monarch on a grand scale in June, coinciding with Queen Elizabeth II’s official birthday. Her husband, Prince Philip, passed away aged 99 last April. Published By: Ritika Shah Published On: Sep 10, 2022 --- ENDS --- ALSO READ | Legacy of Queen Elizabeth II: Uncanny coincidences 70 years apart | VIEWS

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Queen Elizabeth's three visits to India. 15 memorable photos

• Queen Elizabeth II, Britain's longest-serving monarch, died on Thursday at the age of 96. During her tenure of 70 years on the throne, she visited India thrice - 1961, 1983 and 1997. Of the three, the most crucial was the 1961's visit, which was 15 years after India's Independence.

1/15 Former Indian President, Zail Singh, Queen Elizabeth II and Former Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi pose for pictures during her visit to India on November 7th, 1983. (N Thyagarajan / HT Photo)

2/15 Queen Elizabeth being received by former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru on arrival at Palam airport after the conclusion of her Nepal visit. (HT Photo)

3/15 Queen Elizabeth II pays homage at Rajghat in New Delhi, India on October 13, 1997. (Arun Jetlie / HT Photo )

4/15 Queen Elizabeth II pictured as she pays homage at the War Centenary in New Delhi, India on October 15, 1997. (Girish Srivastava / HT Photo)

5/15 The then Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi and Queen Elizabeth II share a conversation at the Rashtrapati Bhavan during her visit to India on November 15, 1983. (KK Chawla / HT Photo)

6/15 The Queen presents Mother Teresa of Calcutta with the Insignia of the Honorary Order of Merit in New Delhi on November 24, 1983. (Virendra Prabhakar / HT Photo)

7/15 The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh seen having a conversation with India’s former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi at Safdarjung road on November 18, 1983. (Virendra Prabhakar / HT Photo)

8/15 The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh pictured with former President K. R. Narayanan and wife Usha Narayanan on October 13, 1997. (SN Sinha / HT Photo)

9/15 Former Indian President, Zail Singh and Queen Elizabeth II arrive in a buggy on November 18, 1983. (KK Chawla / HT Photo)

10/15 School girls perform a religious ritual upon the Queen’s arrival at St Thomas School, Delhi on November 18, 1997. This was the Queen’s second visit to India. (Ajit Kumar / HT Photo)

11/15 Queen Elizabeth II Visits Taj Mahal In Agra in 1961 (Photo: India Today via Twitter)

12/15 Queen Elizabeth II Presented With a Doll, a Gift to Her Son Prince Andrew, New Delhi in 1961 (Photo: Life via Twitter)

13/15 Queen Elizabeth II Visiting a Village Near Jaipur in 1961

14/15 PM Indira Gandhi With Queen Elizabeth II In New Delhi in 1983

15/15 Queen Elizabeth II Addressing Mammoth Crowd at Ramleela Ground In Delhi in 1961

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In Pics: Queen Elizabeth II's Three Royal Visits To India

The 96-year-old queen died on thursday at balmoral castle in scotland after remaining the uk's longest-serving monarch for 70 years..

She was the first British monarch to celebrate a platinum jubilee earlier this year.

Queen Elizabeth II was accorded a rousing reception in 1961 at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan where she addressed a massive gathering in presence of the then prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru during one of her three State visits to India and had also formally inaugurated the institute buildings of AIIMS.

The 96-year-old queen died on Thursday at Balmoral Castle in Scotland after remaining the UK's longest-serving monarch for 70 years. She was the first British monarch to celebrate a platinum jubilee earlier this year. Her husband Prince Philip predeceased her last year just a couple of months shy of turning 100.

Queen Elizabeth II addressing a large gathering at Ramleela Maidan.

Elizabeth II's grandfather King George V and royal consort Queen Mary visited India to attend the historic Delhi Durbar in December 1911 to mark his coronation, and 50 years later, Queen Elizabeth II became the serving British monarch to visit India.

Seven years after her coronation in June 1953, she undertook her first royal visit to India, along with Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, in January 1961. The royal couple toured Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata.

Seven years after her coronation in June 1953, she undertook her first royal visit to India, along with Prince Philip.

They also visited the Taj Mahal in Agra and paid tributes to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat in New Delhi.

In Delhi, the queen was given a rousing reception at the Ramlila Maidan, where she addressed a massive gathering of people, with Nehru and Prince Philip also present on the dais.

The royal couple also visited the Taj Mahal in Agra.

Several thousands of citizens cheered and waved small flags of both countries, as the royal couple were felicitated by the then mayor of Delhi Sham Nath, on a huge elevated oriental-style rostrum, with ceremonial Indian 'hars' (garlands).

The queen was gifted an artistic model of 12th-century minaret Qutub Minar, while the duke of Edinburgh received a silver candelabra, as per rare archival footage of the royal tour.

The platform, which now wears a rather faded look, and the Ramlila Maidan, located between New Delhi and Old Delhi, have witnessed some of the historic events that unfolded in the seven decades since Independence.

The queen was gifted an artistic model of 12th-century minaret Qutub Minar on her visit to India.

The queen, during the Delhi leg of her tour, had also attended the Republic Day celebrations at Rajpath (now renamed Kartavya Path).

Accompanied by Prince Philip, she also formally opened the institute buildings of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences on January 27 at a ceremony attended by the then president Rajendra Prasad.

AIIMS was established in 1956. A plaque commemorating the event still stands on a pillar inside the J L Nehru Auditorium building, and on its diamond jubilee in 2016, some of the rare images from her visit to the premier institute were displayed in an exhibition hosted on the campus.

The queen had also planted a tree on the grand opening of the campus, but it was lost to termites.

"It was a glittering ceremony and on the opening day, she had planted a tree. Unfortunately, we have lost that tree to termites. But we have planted new trees there," the then director of AIIMS Dr M C Misra had told PTI in 2016.

The royal family in the past has recalled memories of the queen's India visit, sharing old pictures from the tour on its official social media handles.

A portrait of the queen bearing "1926-2022" below it now has been put up on its social media page to mourn her death.

The queen also formally opened the institute buildings of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences.

"The Queen and The Royal Family have a personal connection with India and have visited several times," it had tweeted in 2017.

"The Queen's first State Visit to India was in 1961, as the guest of Dr Rajendra Prasad, the first President of India," the Royal Family had said in a subsequent tweet.

"Her Majesty has undertaken three State Visits to India, the first of which was in 1961 - The Queen addresses a crowd in Ramlila Ground and The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh on a walkabout in New Delhi, 1961," it had said in a tweet in 2019 and shared two rare pictures of the 1961 visit.

From India, the royal couple had gone to Pakistan.

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip made two other visits to India - in 1983 and 1997, when India marked the 50th year of its independence.

Her son and heir Charles succeeds her on the throne as King Charles III.

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When Queen Elizabeth II first visited India in 1961

The queen visited in 1961 with her husband, the late duke of edinburgh prince phillip, and presided over the republic day parade as guest of honour on the invitation of india’s first president dr. rajendra prasad..

• Updated Sep 10, 2022, 5:33 PM IST

Britain's longest-serving monarch Queen Elizabeth II, who died on Thursday, visited India three times in 1961, 1983, and 1997. But her first visit, which was 15 years after India’s Independence, was a significant one given that she was the first reigning monarch to visit the former colony. The Queen visited in 1961 with her husband, the late Duke of Edinburgh Phillip, and presided over the Republic Day Parade as Guest of Honour on the invitation of India’s first President Dr. Rajendra Prasad.

The Royal couple also toured Bombay, Madras, and Calcutta, and also visited the Taj Mahal in Agra, and paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at Raj Ghat in New Delhi. 

During the Delhi leg of her 1961 tour, she also visited Rajghat and offered a ceremonial wreath at Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial. The Queen and her husband took off their footwear and wore velvet slippers before entering the memorial. She also addressed a massive crowd at Ramlila Grounds in Delhi, where thousands came to listen to her address. “The warmth and hospitality of the Indian people and the richness and diversity of India itself have been an inspiration to all of us,” she said in one of her addresses.

1983: Commonwealth Meeting  

The Queen again visited India in 1983 during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM). India, the Commonwealth's largest member state, hosted the seventh CHOGM Summit under then PM Indira Gandhi's leadership. 

She was on a nine-day State Visit to India along with Prince Philip.  During that visit, the Queen famously presented Mother Teresa with the Insignia of the Honorary Order of Merit on November 24, 1983. 

1997: Tribute at Jallianwala Bagh  

She again visited India to mark the 50th-anniversary celebrations of India's Independence, and famously spoke about "difficult episodes" of colonial history for the very first time. 

On 13 October 1997, the Queen referenced the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in a state banquet address. “It is no secret that there have been some difficult episodes in our past — Jallianwala Bagh, which I shall visit tomorrow, is a distressing example,” she said. 

On the next day, 14 October, the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh went to Amritsar to pay obeisance at Jallianwala Bagh, where she bowed and placed a wreath at the memorial. 

During her reign, the monarch hosted three Indian presidents – Dr. Radhakrishnan in 1963, R. Venkataraman in 1990, and Pratibha Patil in 2009, and openly spoke about India and Britain’s partnership in the new century. "Britain and India have a long-shared history which today is a source of great strength in building a new partnership fit for this new century,” the Queen said in her State Banquet address for President Patil at Buckingham Palace.

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Queen Elizabeth's visits to India

The monarch visited the former british colony three times after her coronation — in 1961, 1983 and 1997.

September 09, 2022

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The Queen of travel

Queen Elizabeth II 1926 - 2022

Queen Elizabeth II leaves Fiji during a royal tour in February 1977. Serge Lemoine/Getty Images

The Queen of travel Journeys of a lifetime

By Francesca Street and Mark Oliver, CNN September 13, 2022

S he was traveling the moment she ascended to the throne, and for much of the next seven decades, Queen Elizabeth II criss-crossed the world. Newly married and still just a princess, Britain’s future monarch was in Kenya with husband Prince Philip in February 1952 when she learned of her father’s death and her new regal status.

During her reign she would visit more than 120 countries, witnessing first-hand the revolutions in global travel that shrank the world as her own influence over it diminished.

The Queen lived through the advent of the Jet Age, flew supersonic on the Concorde, saw regimes change, countries form and dissolve, the end of the British Empire and the rise of globalization.

Here are some of the most memorable travel moments from her 70 years as monarch.

November 24-25, 1953

Less than six months after she was crowned at Westminster Abbey in London, Queen Elizabeth set off on her travels again. Her debut official state trip was an epic six-month tour of the Commonwealth -- the alliance of nations which were once British colonies. Traveling by air, sea and land she visited several countries, accompanied by her husband, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh. First stop was the North Atlantic island of Bermuda, a British territory she would visit a further four times during her reign. The trip would go on to include stops in Jamaica, Tonga, New Zealand, Australia, Cocos Islands, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), Aden (now part of Yemen), Uganda, Malta and Gibraltar.

December 19-20, 1953

At Queen Elizabeth’s coronation in June 1953, Queen Salote Tupou III of the Polynesian kingdom of Tonga won over the British public when she sat, rain-soaked, in her open carriage. They also took an interest when Elizabeth returned the visit later in the year. The two queens enjoyed an open-air feast, watched Tongan dancers and admired a tortoise that legend said was presented by explorer Captain James Cook to the King of Tonga in 1777.

December 23, 1953 – January 30, 1954

New zealand.

The Queen voyaged to New Zealand during the Antipodean summer of 1953-4. Over the course of the trip, it’s estimated that three out of every four New Zealanders got a glimpse of her. In preparation for the Queen’s visit, some New Zealand sheep were dyed in the UK flag colors of red, white and blue. The Queen returned to the country nine times over the years, including in 2002 as she marked half a century on the throne.

April 10-21, 1954

Ceylon (now sri lanka).

A visit to Ceylon, now Sri Lanka, coincided with the Queen’s 28th birthday. She visited the city of Colombo where crowds joined together to sing her “Happy Birthday.” She also visited the central city of Kandy, where she watched a procession featuring a reported 140 elephants and met local chiefs.

April 8-11, 1957

The Queen had visited France as a young princess, but her first state visit as monarch was a glamorous affair. She attended the Palais Garnier opera house in Paris, visited the Palace of Versailles, and dined at the Louvre with then-President Rene Coty. The Queen also laid a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Arc de Triomphe and visited the Scottish Church of Paris.

October 17-20, 1957

United states.

Having met President Harry S. Truman in Washington in 1951 during a visit before ascending to the throne, Elizabeth was no stranger to America when she arrived on her first trip as Queen. Her 1957 visit marked the 350th anniversary of the first permanent British settlement on the continent, in Jamestown. The monarch attended a college football game at the former Byrd Stadium in Maryland where she watched the home team lose to North Carolina. She met with President Dwight D. Eisenhower in the White House and later traveled to New York, where she and Prince Philip drove through the streets and admired panoramic views of the city from the Empire State Building.

February 1-16, 1961

The Queen and Prince Philip visited Pakistan in 1961, arriving in the port city of Karachi after completing a visit to India as part of a wider tour of South Asia. She drove through the streets of Karachi in an open-top car, before going on to visit Lahore, where a torchlight military tattoo took place in her honor and Prince Philip played in a game of polo.

February 26 to March 1, 1961

In Nepal, the Queen inspected troops in Kathmandu and met Gurkha ex-servicemen in Pokhara. The monarch rode on an elephant and visited the Hanuman Dhoka Palace complex in Kathmandu. She took part in the rather grim spectacle of a tiger hunt although didn’t shoot any animals herself. She instead recorded the experience on cine camera – a recording device that she often carried with her on her earlier foreign trips.

March 2-6, 1961

The Queen visited pre-revolution Iran at the end of her 1961 South Asian tour. Hosted by Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, she toured ancient monuments including the ruins of Persepolis, once a capital of the Achaemenid Empire, later declared a World Heritage Site. She also saw Sheikh Lotfollah mosque in Esfahan and admired collections of the Archaeological Museum of Iran.

May 5, 1961

Vatican city.

In 1961, Elizabeth became the first British monarch to visit the Vatican. Dressed all in black, the Queen had an audience with Pope John XXIII, also attended by Prince Philip. She returned to the Vatican three more times during her reign, meeting Pope John Paul II and Pope Francis.

November 9-20, 1961

Bombing incidents in the capital Accra left officials worried about the safety of the Queen’s visit to Ghana but, after deliberation, UK Prime Minister Harold Macmillan confirmed it would go ahead. During the trip, the Queen famously shared a dance with Ghana’s then-president, Kwame Nkrumah. At the height of Cold War uncertainty, this seemingly innocuous moment was seen as significant in ensuring Ghana remained affiliated to Britain and not the USSR.

May 18-28, 1965

West germany (now germany).

The Queen’s visit to West Germany and West Berlin was viewed as a symbolic gesture of goodwill in the post-World War II landscape. It was the first royal trip to German territory for more than 50 years and photographs such as one of the Queen and Prince Philip in a car driving past the Brandenburg Gate had symbolic resonance.

November 5-11, 1968

Queen Elizabeth became the first reigning British monarch to visit South America when she landed in Brazil in late 1968. During the trip, the Queen wore a striking jewelry set made of Brazilian aquamarine, gifted to her in 1953 by the Brazilian president and added to over time. The monarch also attended a football match between Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, and presented the winner’s trophy to Brazilian footballer Pele.

October 18-25, 1971

On the first of two trips to Turkey -- the second took place in 2008 -- the Queen visited the Gallipoli peninsula to remember the Allied soldiers who died there during World War I. The monarch also explored the ruins of the ancient Greek empire city of Ephesus. A media highlight of the visit came when she was photographed leaping ashore from a barge, after disembarking from her ship, the Royal Yacht Britannia.

February 10-15, 1972

Accompanied by Prince Philip and daughter Princess Anne, the Queen was greeted on arrival in Bangkok by a carpet of flower petals. The monarch was given a golden key to the city of Bangkok, attended a state banquet and visited Bang Pa-In Palace, the Thai royal family’s summer residence, north of the capital.

October 17-21, 1972

The Queen’s visit to Yugoslavia was her first trip to a communist country. The Central European country no longer exists -- the areas that the Queen visited are now part of Croatia. During her trip, she met Yugoslav political leader Josip Broz Tito and traveled on his famous Blue Train.

February 15-16, 1974

New hebrides (now vanuatu).

The Queen and Prince Philip visited the Pacific island archipelago of Vanuatu, then known as the New Hebrides, in 1974. It’s said the royal couple’s visit to Vanuatu may have strengthened the belief among some locals on Tanna island that the Duke of Edinburgh was a divine being.

February 24-March 1, 1975

On her first of two visits to Mexico, the Queen toured ancient sites -- including the pyramids of Uxmal, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The monarch also received local crafts, met school children and attended a banquet. While she was driven through Mexico City, the Queen was showered in confetti.

February 17-20, 1979

Saudi arabia.

In 1979, the Queen became the first female head of state to visit Saudi Arabia, on a tour of Gulf States. At Riyadh Airport, she was met by King Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, pictured. The outfits she wore on the trip were carefully designed in accordance with Saudi Arabia’s conservative dress code for women. The Queen arrived on a British Airways supersonic Concorde aircraft and during the visit attended camel races and toured the National Museum.

October 26-27, 1982

The Queen visited Tuvalu, a group of nine islands in the South Pacific, in 1982. Upon arrival, the Queen and Prince Philip were carried in a flower-filled canoe from sea to shore. Thirty years later, in 2012, Prince William visited Tuvalu with his wife, the Duchess of Cambridge, who drank a coconut from a tree planted by Queen Elizabeth on this 1982 visit.

February 26 – March 6, 1983

On a star-studded trip to the United States, the Queen toured the 20th Century-Fox studios in Hollywood with then-First Lady Nancy Reagan and met Frank Sinatra, who she’d previously met in the 1950s, at a party given in her honor. The Queen and Prince Philip also visited Yosemite National Park in California, pictured.

November 10-14, 1983

The Queen returned to Kenya in 1983 for a state visit. When she was there 31 years previously, she'd learned that her father had passed away and she had become Britain’s reigning monarch. In 1983, the Queen and Prince Philip revisited the Treetops hotel, pictured, where they were staying at the time she was told the news.

October 12-18, 1986

The Queen’s trip to China was the first -- and, so far, only -- state visit by a British monarch to China. With Prince Philip by her side, the Queen visited the Great Wall of China, pictured, as well as the Forbidden City in Beijing.

October 17-20, 1994

In 1994, in another royal first, the Queen visited Russia. Over the three-day trip, the Queen met Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov, pictured here with the monarch outside St Basil’s Cathedral, as well as Russian President Boris Yeltsin. The Queen also attended the Bolshoi Ballet. In her traditional Christmas Day speech broadcast later that year, the Queen reflected on how times had changed, noting she “never thought it would be possible in [her] lifetime” to attend a service in Moscow’s famous cathedral.

March 19-25, 1995

South africa.

In 1994, after apartheid ended, South Africa rejoined the Commonwealth as a republic. The following year, the Queen traveled there, in a visit designed to renew ties between the two countries. The Queen met with President Nelson Mandela, pictured, and presented him with the Order of Merit.

October 12-18, 1997

The Queen visited India for the third time in 1997, her first public engagement since Princess Diana’s funeral just weeks before. The trip marked 50 years since India’s independence from Britain. Most memorably, the monarch visited the site of the Amritsar massacre, also known as the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, of April 13, 1919. She also expressed regret at a state banquet in New Delhi for the “distressing” episode in which British soldiers gunned down hundreds of unarmed civilians. The gesture was seen by some as inadequate. “The Queen is doing everything she can to make India like her. But so far it does not seem to be working,” wrote the UK’s Independent newspaper at the time.

October 4-15, 2002

The Queen visited Canada many times. In 2002, her trip to the North American country coincided with her Golden Jubilee festivities, celebrating 50 years of her reign. During the trip, the Queen attended an ice hockey game between the Vancouver Canucks and the San Jose Sharks, and dropped the ceremonial puck.

March 11-16, 2006

The Queen visited Australia 16 times as Head of State. In 2006, she traveled to Melbourne to open the Commonwealth Games. She was greeted by a welcoming party in Canberra, visited the Sydney Opera House, attended a Commonwealth Day service in St. Andrew’s Cathedral and toured Admiralty House, the Sydney residence of the Governor-General of Australia.

May 17-20, 2011

The Queen’s trip to Dublin was the first time a British monarch had set foot in the Irish Republic since its 1922 independence. At Dublin Castle the Queen delivered a well-received speech on the history of Anglo-Irish relations. In County Tipperary, she also toured the medieval Rock of Cashel, pictured, once a seat of power for Ireland’s ancient kings.

November 26-28, 2015

From 1949 to 1951, before she was Queen, Elizabeth and Prince Philip lived in Malta. In 2015, the monarch paid her last visit to the island, touring the Grand Harbour in a Maltese fishing boat and waving to members of the British Royal Navy.

United Kingdom

In the later years of her reign, the Queen cut back on foreign travel, passing on the mantle to the younger royals. In more recent years, royal tours have also been looked at with more skeptical eyes, as Britain reckons with its colonial past.

While she didn't travel abroad in the later years of her reign, the Queen continued to vacation in the UK. Most notably, the Queen’s ties with Scotland remained strong throughout her reign and her residence there, Balmoral Castle, was a favorite refuge. It was at Balmoral that the Queen died on September 8, 2022.

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Queen Elizabeth made 3 visits to India during reign, admired country's richness, diversity

London: Queen Elizabeth II, who died aged 96 on Thursday, was the first British monarch to accede to the throne after India's Independence from colonial rule in 1952 and admired the "richness and diversity" of India where she made three State Visits over the course of her reign in 1961, 1983 and 1997.

The warmth and hospitality of the Indian people and the richness and diversity of India itself have been an inspiration to all of us, she said in one of her addresses.

In 1961, the Queen and her husband, the late Prince Phillip Duke of Edinburgh, toured Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata, then Bombay, Madras, and Calcutta, and also visited the Taj Mahal in Agra and paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at Raj Ghat in New Delhi.

Tribute | Queen Elizabeth II, a majestic legacy

PM Modi remembers Queen Elizabeth as 'stalwart of our times'

They were Guests of Honour at the Republic Day Parade on the invitation of the then President, Dr Rajendra Prasad, and an enduring image from the tour shows the Queen addressing a massive crowd of several thousand people packed into Ramlila Grounds in Delhi for her address, dressed in a fur coat and hat.

In 1983, her visit was in time for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) and she famously presented Mother Teresa with an honorary Order of the Merit. Her final visit to India was to mark the 50th anniversary celebrations of India's Independence and for the first time, she made a reference to difficult episodes of colonial history.

It is no secret that there have been some difficult episodes in our past. Jallianwala Bagh is a distressing example, the monarch noted in her banquet address.

She and her husband later paid a visit to the scene of the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar to place a wreath at the memorial, amid widespread calls for an apology for the thousands killed at the orders of a British General during the Raj era.

Over the years, the Queen has also hosted three Indian presidents, Dr Radhakrishnan, in 1963, R Venkataraman in 1990 and Pratibha Patil in 2009.

Britain and India have a long-shared history which today is a source of great strength in building a new partnership fit for this new century, the Queen said in her State Banquet address for President Patil at Buckingham Palace.

Nearly two million of our own citizens are tied by descent and enduring family links to India. They represent one of the United Kingdom's most dynamic and successful communities relations between our two countries are built on strong and deep foundations and are set fair for the 21st century, she said.

The Queen's death triggers what is dubbed in Britain's royal circles as Operation London Bridge or the formal preparations and protocol that kicks in following the death of the monarch with Operation Spring Tide, or the accession of her son and heir Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, to the throne.

As the Queen died at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, Operation Unicorn also kicked in which involves her body being transported to London by train.

"The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon, Buckingham Palace said in a statement on Thursday.

"The King and the Queen Consort [Charles and Camilla] will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow [Friday]," the statement said.

'London Bridge is down' is allegedly the way in which the death of the monarch would have been communicated to the Prime Minister, Liz Truss, by the Queen's Private Secretary, who will also tell the Cabinet Secretary and the Privy Council of senior officials and ministers.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) Global Response Centre is responsible for informing governments outside the UK where she is Head of State, followed by other Commonwealth nations, including India. The day of her death is referred to as D-Day, with each subsequent day a countdown until the funeral, expected 10 days after her death.

It comes just days after she appointed her 15th Prime Minister, Liz Truss, at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, where she had been staying for her summer break. It marked a historic first for a British Prime Minister to not be anointed at Buckingham Palace in London after it was decided the journey would be avoided for the monarch, who has been suffering some mobility issues since last year and has been using a walking stick.

The UK celebrated the Platinum Jubilee of its longest-serving monarch on a grand scale in June, coinciding with Queen Elizabeth II's official birthday. Her husband, Prince Philip, passed away aged 99 last April.

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Queen Elizabeth II And Independent India: A Journey of 'Shared History' and Pending Apology

Curated By : News Desk

Last Updated: September 09, 2022, 20:50 IST

New Delhi, India

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II delivers her speech during an evening banquet at the Presidential Palace in New Delhi on October 13, 1997. (Reuters)

Queen Elizabeth II came to the throne five years after India gained Independence from the British Raj. During her final visit to India in 1997, many expected her to offer an apology on behalf of her country for the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre. That expectation passes on to her son, King Charles III

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II started her reign in 1952, five years after India gained Independence from the vast colonial empire she headed. The British monarch, who died on Thursday passing the crown to son Charles , was known to nurture a special fondness for India. This bond was furthered by her proximity to Louis Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of India and her husband Prince Philip’s maternal uncle who steered his nephew into the British royal family.

While she enjoyed the warmth and hospitality of the Indian people on these visits, the relationship was not without its dark episodes, alluded to by the Queen herself in speeches.

Her death, ironically, came on a day the Indian government renamed the iconic Rajpath to Kartavya Path. The ceremonial boulevard running from the Raisina Hill complex to India Gate had started its journey as Kingsway, built after the imperial seat of the administration was shifted from Calcutta to Delhi under the reign of Elizabeth’s grandfather King George V in 1911. It was on this boulevard that the Queen and her husband Prince Philip witnessed India’s Republic Day Parade as Guests of Honour during their first royal visit in 1961.

The Queen is Coming

Queen Elizabeth II undertook three State Visits to India. In January 1961, the Queen and her husband, the late Prince Phillip, toured Bombay, Madras and Calcutta (now Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata) and also visited the Taj Mahal in Agra and paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat in New Delhi. This was her first royal visit to India, seven years after her coronation in June 1953.

They were Guests of Honour at the Republic Day Parade on the invitation of the then President, Dr Rajendra Prasad. An enduring image from the tour shows the Queen addressing a massive crowd of several thousand people packed into Ramlila Grounds in Delhi, with India’s first prime minister Nehru and Prince Philip also present on the dais.

Thousands cheered and waved small flags of both countries as the royal couple were felicitated by the then mayor of Delhi Sham Nath on a huge elevated oriental-style rostrum, with ceremonial Indian garlands. The queen was gifted an artistic model of 12th-century minaret Qutub Minar, while the Duke of Edinburgh received a silver candelabra.

On January 27, 1961, she also formally opened the institute buildings of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences at a ceremony attended by the then president Rajendra Prasad. AIIMS was established in 1956.

A plaque commemorating the event still stands on a pillar inside the JL Nehru Auditorium building, and on its diamond jubilee in 2016, some of the rare images from her visit to the premier institute were displayed in an exhibition hosted on the campus.

In 1983, Queen Elizabeth’s visit was in time for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting and she famously presented Mother Teresa with an honorary Order of the Merit.

Her final visit to India in 1997 was to mark the 50th anniversary celebrations of India’s Independence and for the first time she made a reference to difficult episodes of colonial history.

Jallianwala Bagh: Regret But No Apology

Multiple British prime ministers and envoys to India have expressed “regret” over one of the British Empire’s bloodiest episodes in India and have laid wreaths in Amritsar at the scene of the notorious massacre of unarmed civilians. But no representative of the Crown or government has issued a direct apology for the Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919.

Queen Elizabeth referenced the slaughter, described by Mahatma Gandhi as having shaken the foundations of the British Empire, during her 1997 visit to India.

“It is no secret that there have been some difficult episodes in our past. Jallianwala Bagh is a distressing example,” the monarch noted in her banquet address.

She and her husband later paid a visit to the scene of the massacre in Amritsar to place a wreath at the memorial amid widespread calls for an apology for the thousands killed during a Baisakhi gathering at the orders of General Dyer on April 13, 1919.

Sukumar Mukherjee, secretary of the trust that takes care of Jallianwala Bagh Memorial, remembers the Queen visiting the scene and paying tribute to the dead, but stopping short of offering an apology.

Many had expected her to offer an apology then on behalf of her country, but that didn’t happen. Instead, an insensitive remark reportedly made by Prince Philip, questioning the fatality count of the massacre, upset many Indians.

But Mukherjee says the visit itself was significant. “I think when she came to the Jallianwala Bagh here she paid respect to the martyrs and she also observed a minute of silence. It is not a minor thing that the Queen of a country does that and I think it was more than an apology,” he has been quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

But for Mahesh Behal, whose grandfather Lala Hari Ram Behal was killed at Jallianwala Bagh, the gesture amounted to nothing.

“The visit of the Queen in 1997 to Jallianwala Bagh was meaningless without her expression of apology. During her visit to the place of martyrs, she should have directly offered an apology but she never did so,” he says.

“When she arrived in India in 1997, a large group from the families of freedom fighters from Amritsar went to Rajghat in Delhi, where we all sat on a hunger strike and said that without an apology her visit to Amritsar will remain meaningless,” recalls Behal.

In April 1919, when the centenary of the massacre was observed, the UK government flagged “financial implications” as one of the factors it had to consider while reflecting upon demands for a formal apology.

Then UK Foreign Office minister Mark Field said during a debate on “Jallianwala Bagh massacre” at Westminster Hall in the House of Commons complex that while it was important to draw a line under the past over the “shameful episode” in history, repeatedly issuing apologies for events related to the British Raj came with their own problems.

“I have slightly orthodox views on Britain’s colonial past. I feel little reluctant to make apologies for things that have happened in the past… There are also concerns that any government department has to make about any apology, given that there may well be financial implications to making an apology,” he had said.

“I feel we perhaps debase the currency of apologies if we are seen to make them for many, many events.”

Quest for Kohinoor

The death of Queen Elizabeth has also rekindled the demand for the return of the Kohinoor diamond to India. With her son Prince Charles succeeding to the throne, the 105-carat diamond, which is steeped in history, will go to his wife Duchess of Cornwall Camilla, who has now become Queen consort.

Kohinoor, or ‘Mountain of Light’, is a large, colourless diamond that was found in southern India in the early 14th century. The precious gem, which came into British hands during the colonial era, is the subject of a historic ownership dispute and is claimed by at least four countries, including India.

The Kohinoor diamond was “surrendered” by the Maharaja of Lahore to the then Queen of England and “not handed over” to the British nearly 170 years ago, the Archaeological Survey of India replied to an RTI query a few years ago.

However, the Indian government’s stand in the Supreme Court was that the diamond, estimated to cost over $200 million, was neither stolen nor “forcibly” taken by British rulers but given to East India Company by erstwhile rulers of Punjab.

In the book An Era of Darkness , Shashi Tharoor noted that it was once touted to be the world’s largest diamond, weighing 793 carats or 158.6 grams. The diamond is believed to have been first mined near Guntur in Andhra Pradesh by the Kakatiya dynasty in the 13th century.

From its original glory of 158 carats, the diamond has been whittled down to its present 105 carats form over the centuries. Tharoor notes the popular jewel’s journey through royal hands as it passed from the Kakatiyas in the Deccan to Delhi Sultan Alauddin Khilji and then to the Mughal empire. It reached Afghanistan with Persian invader Nadir Shah.

Legend has it that it was Nadir Shah who named the diamond the Kohinoor. It passed through different dynasties before landing in the possession of the Sikh Maharaja of Punjab, Ranjit Singh, in 1809, Tharoor noted.

He claims that Ranjit Singh’s successor could not hold on to his kingdom and was defeated by the British in two wars. “That was when the Kohinoor fell into British hands.”

Tharoor penned a poignant argument in favour of the diamond’s return to India and made critical remarks against the UK’s colonial history. “Flaunting the Kohinoor on the Queen Mother’s crown in the Tower of London is a powerful reminder of the injustices perpetrated by the former imperial power. Until it is returned at least as a symbolic gesture of expiation it will remain evidence of the loot, plunder and misappropriation that colonialism was really all about,” he said.

Author and historian William Dalrymple noted in his book, Kohinoor that child Sikh heir Duleep Singh regretted having surrendered the jewel to Queen Victoria.

“I would give a good deal to hold it again in my own hand. I was but a child, an infant, when forced to surrender it by treaty… Now that I am a man, I would like to have it in my power to place it myself in Her Majesty’s hand.”

The government has made demands for Kohinoor’s return on several occasions with one as early as 1947. However, the British government over the years have rejected the claims.

On his visit to India in July 2010, then UK prime minister David Cameron said, “If you say yes to one you suddenly find the British Museum would be empty. I am afraid to say, it is going to have to stay put.”

Those who have been calling for the diamond’s return were let down in 2016 when responding to a public interest litigation then Solicitor General of India Ranjit Kumar told the Supreme Court that the Kohinoor was “given voluntarily by Ranjit Singh to the British compensation for help in the Sikh wars”. “The Kohinoor is not a stolen object,” he had said.

Then Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma later ruled out any action by his ministry to bring back the famed diamond, saying that if any call on the matter needs to be taken, it will be at the diplomatic level.

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Queen Elizabeth II and her visits to India

Updated Sep 9, 2022, 21:05 IST

Queen Elizabeth II (file).

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Queen Elizabeth II passes away at 96: A look at her 3 visits to India

Queen elizabeth ii passed away on thursday at 96.

Queen Elizabeth II passed away on Thursday at 96. She reigned for 70 years, and was the longest serving monarch in British history. Buckingham Palace announced her death in a statement, announcing ten days of national mourning.

“The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon,” the statement said.

The queen’s death came after the palace announced on Thursday that doctors were concerned for her health and recommended, she stay under medical supervision.

The queen had been suffering from age-related mobility issues since last October, and had difficulties walking and standing and had cut down on her travels, with appointing new Prime Minister Liz Truss in Scotland two days earlier.

Also Read: Queen Elizabeth accepted limitations, dedicated her life to being the Queen

The eldest of her four children, Charles, Prince of Wales, will become king immediately.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among the top world leaders to express his condolences for the queen and said she will be remembered as the stalwart of our times.

Queen Elizabeth II has visited India thrice during her reign and here we look back at her visits to the country.

Her visit to India which came nearly 15 years after India gained independence and eight years after her coronation, is the most memorable. It was the first visit by not only a British monarch to India after the country got its independence, but also the first visit by a reigning British monarch to the country. Queen Elizabeth, along with her husband the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip visited the national Capital in January 1961. The then president Dr Rajendra Prasad, and Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru received the royal couple at the airport. The Queen visited Rajghat and offered a ceremonial wreath at Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial, 13 years after his death. She also inaugurated the institute buildings of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on January 27 at a grand ceremony attended by then President Prasad. The Queen also toured Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata, and also visited the Taj Mahal in Agra. They were guests of honour at the invitation of president Dr Prasad, and an image from the tour shows the Queen addressing a massive crowd of several thousand people who had thronged to Ramlila Grounds in Delhi for her address.

In 1983, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip visited India at the invitation of then- President Giani Zail Singh and stayed at the refurbished wing of the Rashtrapati Bhavan. She attended the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting and on this visit, the Queen notably presented Mother Teresa with an honorary Order of Merit and also visited India’s then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

Queen Elizabeth’s II final visit to India was in 1997, marking 50 years since India’s independence. The Queen and Prince Phillip met the then president of India KR Narayanan and his wife along with Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral and his wife. They also paid their respects to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat again. Notably, to mark the 50th anniversary of India’s independence, the Queen visited the Jallianwala Bagh Memorial in Amritsar, amid widespread calls for an apology for the thousands killed at the orders of a British general in 1919, during the colonial era. Back then, the Queen had acknowledged, “It is no secret that there have been some difficult episodes in our past. Jallianwalla Bagh is a distressing example,” in her banquet address. She even bowed her head and placed a wreath at the memorial, as the Independent reported. For the first time, she referred to the difficult episodes of India’s colonial history. The next leg of the tour was in South India. In one of her addresses, the Queen said that she cherished the “warmth and hospitality of the Indian people” she received during her three state visits during her reign, and that “the richness and diversity of India itself has been an inspiration to all of us.” Over the years, the Queen has also hosted three Indian presidents – Dr Radhakrishnan in 1963, R. Venkataraman in 1990 and Pratibha Patil in 2009.

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In Lady Pamela , India Hicks Tells the Remarkable Story of Her Mother

Lady Pamela Hicks was in the shadow of Queen Elizabeth her whole life. Now, her daughter is bringing her into the spotlight.

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Lady Pamela Hicks has served as witness to key moments in British royal history. The daughter of Lord Mountbatten and a first cousin of Prince Philip , Lady Pamela was a bridesmaid at Queen Elizabeth's royal wedding , a lady-in-waiting for the Queen, and joined her on many overseas tours of the Commonwealth.

Now, her daughter, India Hicks is telling her full story in a brand-new illustrated biography: Lady Pamela: My Mother's Extraordinary Years as Daughter to the Viceroy of India, Lady-in-Waiting to the Queen, and Wife of David Hicks (out today). "People perhaps see a very privileged life, which indeed it was," she tells T&C about her mother's life. "But there was a lot of extraordinary moments of darkness in there. We should not ever judge before we have a little further look into the lives of people." Ahead of the publication of Lady Pamela, Hicks spoke with T&C about her mother's remarkable life and her thoughts on the royals in 2024.

What inspired you to work on Lady Pamela ?

Lady pamela: my mother's extraordinary years as daughter to the viceroy of india, lady-in-waiting to the queen, and wife of david hicks.

When I began to have my own life and my own children and I became a mother myself, I saw her differently; I suddenly realized how extraordinary she was—not just as a mother, but as a person. What I recognized was she had always been in the shadows. She was in the shadow of very great parents who were very famous and did a lot of good and did many extraordinary things and also much criticized, but they were always in the limelight. She was in the shadow of her older sister, who was a remarkable woman, very hardworking, became a judge. She was very much in the shadow of my father, David Hicks, who was a whirling dervish of design and ideas and a passion for life. And she was, of course, in the shadow of the Queen—as she should have been, as a lady in waiting. And I just realized that actually her story now, particularly that she's 95, the combination of all of that is very remarkable.

One thing that struck me was that your mother admits she wasn’t “immediately enamored” with being a lady-in-waiting, but she had no choice. Can you tell me more about this?

Her time in India had been very dramatic. Going out to India, when my grandfather [Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma] was there as the Viceroy, she was 17 years old and had no understanding of what she was going to—it was a country on the verge of civil war and she watched the birth of two nations through these very young, immature eyes. That also is an extraordinary thing: a front row seat at Indian independence. She sat with Gandhi at prayer meetings, and I always think, 'how many people alive today have actually sat beside Gandhi at a prayer meeting?'

When she comes back to England, her set of friends have all been coming out balls and getting married to Dukes of large estates—it was a world that my mother, by then, didn't feel particularly comfortable in. Suddenly, she's asked [to travel] around the world, and it is work. You are on duty a lot of the time. You are two steps behind in the shadow. She says it was a real privilege, but I think she was looking for a little bit of peace and quiet.

Your mother was lady-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth for many years, and joined her on two Commonwealth Tours, which you write extensively about. What is something most people don’t know about what goes on behind the scenes of a royal tour?

People underestimate how much work it is for the member of the royal family, for the Queen and Prince Philip to do seven months on tour, and day in and day out to be scrutinized in every possible way. And, to shake the hand of everyone—my mother said that that was very important; the actual human touch made a huge difference. You go to all these countries that are part of the Commonwealth and know the Queen as a face on a stamp. To actually touch and to realize that she's human again, my mother said was extraordinary for people and the crowds. The love for her was incredible. For the Queen, it came very naturally to her; she was the ultimate diplomat. She knew exactly what to say to whom. Prince Philip was a little bit more of a loose canon, but as a result, people adored him when they met him, because he said exactly what he thought and what he felt. What my mother always says is the combination of the two of them is what was so brilliant and so powerful and so strong.

One of the most moving chapters in Lady Pamela is when you write about your grandfather Lord Mountbatten . What are your recollections of that day he was killed? What was it like for you to watch those events recreated on The Crown ?

I didn't watch that episode of The Crown . Of course, I have very vivid memories. They're childish in many respects, and now I look back and see it very much through my mother's eyes. That was my first experience of witnessing the world's press. It was very alarming for me as a young girl. My mother was used to that, but she was just navigating on so many fronts.

She was really the only adult on the ground. Her beloved sister was on life support. My uncle, who she's incredibly close with, was very near to death, her father had been murdered in the water immediately. One of the twins was in the hospital, the other twin also had died. The lad who helped us every summer on the boat had also been killed. We were all there; we all heard the bomb; we all suffered the trauma. But I often think that for my mother, particularly, it must have been really, really difficult. Of course, because she is of a certain generation and a certain upbringing—being very English—she never showed any of it ever. There's this extraordinary, I think, inspiring story about resilience and about how we should all perhaps pay little attention to that older generation who have lived through war and do very, very strong.

There is much criticism around my grandparents, but they certainly instilled in my mother and the wider family the sense of duty and service. And so whatever one can say or people want to rewrite history to suit them, that was definitely this idea that you were there to serve others. My mother absolutely has felt that. So she felt it was her duty to go on the Commonwealth tour. She felt it was her duty to take on all these charitable causes and be the patron of all these foundations later in life.

Lady Pamela ends with three funerals: of your grandfather, father, and then Queen Elizabeth. You also write you learn you heard of Queen Elizabeth’s passing that she had a stroke– this was news to me, I’m just curious to learn more.

When I called my mother, I was getting on an airplane and the news [about Queen Elizabeth's health] came through. Someone I was traveling with had had some inside information, so called my mother to say, 'This is what's happening and the Queen has had a stroke.' I said, 'Should I come back?' And she said, 'Darling, the poor Queen's had the stroke, not me. You must go on with what you are doing.' Just no fuss. When I came back from where I had been for the weekend, the Queen subsequently had died . When I arrived back to the house, my mother was dressed in black, and she remained dressed in black for a period of mourning. And I don't know what the official court mourning is, and she remained dressed in black, even though she lives quite alone in the countryside.

Your mother was obviously at Queen Elizabeth's coronation, but what was it like for you to watch King Charles's coronation last year?

There was a lot of conversation around my mother and others who were not included in that ceremony in the Abbey . My mother says that was the right thing to do. Why would you fill those seats when with the old family members, when you could fill them with people who have done incredible worthy good causes more recently, who would gain so much more from that? It never occurred to her that she should have had a seat there at that coronation. In fact, she said she saw so more from sitting with her feet up and a cup of tea watching it fascinated on television.

As King Charles's goddaughter, how does it feel be an extended member of the royal family in 2024? How does it impact your life?

I felt great pride and great privilege of having had experiences of standing on that incredible balcony at Palace. But the cleverness and the correctness of the royal family slimming down to just very small working group is very important and very sensible. So I am certainly not a member of the royal family now, but I do feel great privilege of having been a part of some of those more historical moments.

It's been quite a tumultuous year for them. And I'm not sure if you have any updates on how King Charles is doing in terms of his health or any insight you can provide there.

With the rest of the world, we watch with such sadness that he finally gets into the role of a King—and [he gets sick]. He is a very different sovereign to his mother. We had this very exceptional Queen who was our rock and our guiding light, but my god, has Charles proved himself. This man—who's dedicated himself to service of love and has worked so hard all of his life—to then find yourself ill, it must be just exhausting. Exhausting because you've got so much you want to do and so many places you need to be in so many things you have to attend. And his workload is crippling. And he's not someone who says no. He works very, very hard, is very, very diligent in everything he does. I can only imagine how frustrating it must be for him.

As one of her bridesmaids, what do you make of Princess Diana's continued influence on fashion and pop culture?

Clearly, she was a remarkable and very unique person in the fact that she was very brave in the way she tackled a very complicated role, as Princess of Wales, of then being a single mom. She was very remarkable in the way she was fearless with the way she would reach out and touch people. She was fearless in the way she walked amongst in live war zones. So she was extraordinary. It's slightly disappointing that people focus on the fashion.

It just comes back to people misunderstanding quite how hard the royal families do work. They do need modernizing for sure, times change, and we are moving forward. But I think that the fantastic four of Charles, Camilla, and William, and Kate, when she recovers, is a very powerful thing.

Emily Burack (she/her) is the Senior News Editor for Town & Country, where she covers entertainment, culture, the royals, and a range of other subjects. Before joining T&C, she was the deputy managing editor at Hey Alma , a Jewish culture site. Follow her @emburack on Twitter and Instagram .

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