The Queen’s 90th Birthday and a Royal Visit to Lymington in one day!
Many Happy Returns to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
Today is the 90th birthday of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II who has reigned over the United Kingdom since 1952 and is now the longest reigning British monarch ever, having overtaken Queen Victoria last September. We wish Her Majesty a Very Happy Birthday.
We are totally in awe of our Queen’s adherence to her destiny and her duty for these long decades, of her dignity and her elegance. Our Prime Minister put it very nicely this morning calling her a Rock for our Nation.
Here are the brand new photos released for today:
Another Royal Visit to Lymington – today!
Today also sees a visit to Lymington of Royalty. As the Patron of the Royal Lymington Yacht Club, H.R.H The Princess Royal will officially open the Club’s new pontoon complex later today.
Indeed Princess Anne is also way up there in our respect and admiration, for her own tireless work on behalf of charities especially Save the Children, and also for her continued support and encouragement of young sailors, for which reasons she's here today.
Royal Visits to Hampshire and Dorset through the decades – courtesy of the Daily Echo’s archives
“People in Wimborne waited for hours to catch a glimpse of the young Princess Elizabeth in 1948.
She was on her way to Lulworth to inspect the 16th/5th Lancers, and her trip took her through Lytchett Minster and Holme Bridge, where children laughed as a gust of wind blew away her hat.
GALLERY: see pictures of the Queen's visits to Dorset
In summer 1949, the princess was in the New Forest to open Avon Tyrrell as the holiday centre for the National Association of Girls Clubs and Mixed Clubs – the village’s first ever Royal visit.
Elizabeth returned to Dorset as Queen in July 1952, on a tour which took her to Shaftesbury, Poundbury, Maiden Castle and Gillingham – where she spoke to brush makers at a factory. “Whenever I am interested in something, someone always comes to tell me it is time to go,” she confided.
Who saw the Queen in Lymington in 1966? If you have any photos please send!
In 1966, the Queen visited Bournemouth Gardens, Christchurch and Lymington , and in 1969, she was in Poole to open its new hospital.
The royal party then travelled through Wimborne and Wareham to Winfrith.
A decade later, in 1979, the Queen and Prince Philip arrived in Poole to be presented with specially commissioned pieces of Poole Pottery. They visited the Quay and officially opened the new Poole Arts Centre.
The tour ended at Bournemouth Police Station in Madeira Road, where they saw the control centre.
Later that year, the royal couple were in the New Forest to travel in an open landau through the Ornamental Drive at Brockenhurst.
In 1984, the Queen and the Duke visited the Royal Marines at Hamworthy, before looking over the village of Lulworth Cove and meeting holidaymakers.
In 1991, they were at Crichel House in Wimborne and Port Regis School in Shaftesbury, and in 1995 the queen awarded Poole’s Ryvita factory the Royal Warrant.
The Queen, who is colonel-in-chief of the Royal Tank Regiment, was in Bovington in 1991 and 1997 to watch soldiers in training. Her grandsons William and Harry would train there years later.
The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh were at Port Regis School to see Peter and Zara Phillips, their two oldest grandchildren, in sports displays, and to open a new gymnasium in 1997.
Another major visit to Dorset took place in May 1998. The Queen arrived at Poole station, to be greeted by civic dignitaries and children from Longespee Special School in Canford Heath.
She went on to Queen Elizabeth’s School in Wimborne, where 100 well-wishers gathered outside and all 1,300 pupils had a chance to see the monarch.
The visit ended in Sherborne, where the Queen took part in the dedication of the abbey’s new Great West Window.
The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh arrived by helicopter at Kings Park in 2004, where the reception party included Cherries captain Steve Fletcher.
The royal couple were greeted by a crowd of 5,000 at Bournemouth seafront and the Queen was presented with a giant stick of rock by three-year-old Jasmine Shaw.
Her Majesty then headed off to visit Poole’s Lighthouse once more and tour the new RNLI training college. Thousands lined Poole Quay as the royals left on a lifeboat.
And in 2012, a busy international Diamond Jubilee tour took in Sherborne and finished at the New Forest Show – where the Queen made the day of seven-year-old Matilda Rigby by stopping to take a letter from her.
Do send your photos of that day too! We'll then publish a special gallery.
Photo Credits: © Annie Leibovitz / PA Wire
Lymington.com 21 April 2016
