Britain´s Queen Elizabeth II speaks with Pope Francis during first meeting on April 3, 214, at the Vatican. Photo by STEFANO RELLANDINI
A look back at Queen Elizabeth II’s encounters with five popes
Courtney Mares Rome Newsroom, Sep 8, 2022 / 10:12 am
With the Royal Family gathering in Balmoral Castle Thursday amid concerns for Queen Elizabeth II’s health,Catholic bishops in England and Wales have offered their prayersfor her and her family.
Queen Elizabeth meets Pope John Paul II October 17, 1980
Queen Elizabeth II is witness
to more than one pope
Today’s meeting with Pope Francis won’t be the first time Queen Elizabeth II has met a Roman Pontiff. In her many years as Queen of England, the queen has met with several popes, two of whom will soon be canonized saints. She met with John XXIII, John Paul II, Benedict XVI and now Francis, pictured below.
Queen Elizabeth II arrives in Mustique, Saint Vincent and is welcomed by Princess Margaret in 1977.ANWAR HUSSEIN
Princess Margaret’s wild final years on the island of Mustique
Elizabeth II’s sister fell in love with the paradisiacal place as soon as she visited it for the first time in 1960. Not only did she have a house built for her there, but while still married, the destination was also the scene of her relationship with the young Roddy Llewellyn
Sergio del Amo
September 20, 2022
When aristocrat Colin Tennant, the 3rd Baron Glenconner, bought an exotic Caribbean island north of Venezuela for £45,000 in 1958, his wife Anne thought he had lost his mind. On this four-square-mile islet that he named Mustique, because it was infested with mosquitoes, barely a few cotton fields were visible. There was neither drinking water nor electricity. But despite this, he set himself a goal: to turn the piece of land into the favorite residence for the wealthy. After building a primitive airport a year after their arrival, as well as their own house, the Tennants laid the foundations for what would end up being one of the most successful real estate businesses of recent decades.
What seemed to the press an impenetrable bohemian paradise immediately caught the attention of Princess Margaret. She fell in love with it in 1960, the year in which Elizabeth II’s younger sister starred in the first televised royal wedding in history. After saying “I do” to photographer Antony Armstrong-Jones (who was given the title of Lord Snowdon), the couple embarked on a six-week trip to the Caribbean on the yacht Britannia. Anne Tennant was not just Margaret’s friend and confidante but also her lady-in-waiting at Westminster Abbey, and she suggested the newlywed couple stop at Mustique. As soon as the ship was anchored, they went for a swim.
Princess Margaret and Colin Tennant, in February 1989.SLIM AARONS (GETTY IMAGES)
23.3K
Un ataque con drones rusos en Kiev deja al menos tres muertos | EL PAÍS
During their days on the island, they had no choice but to shower with buckets of water hanging from some trees. And they were not exactly received with an opulent banquet: there was only fish and the occasional can of preserves. Against all odds, the princess was fascinated by the experience. On their last night of that honeymoon, when Colin himself asked her “do you want something in a little box, or would you prefer a piece of land?”, Margaret replied, “Oh, I think a piece of land would be wonderful.” Antony was not amused by the proposal at all. Moreover, it is known that he referred to the island as “Mustake.” He never set foot there again.
Not until years later, at the beginning of 1968, did Margaret call Colin to demand her belated wedding gift: “Were you really serious about the land?” “Yes,” he replied. “And does it come with a house?” she retorted. The baron complied with her wishes. A few months after that call, she returned to Mustique. Accompanied by Colin and Anne, and dressed in simple pajamas, she was shown around Gelliceaux Point, the highest and most inaccessible point on the islet. The construction of Les Jolies Eaux, a neo-Georgian villa with five bedrooms, two swimming pools and austere white furniture, was concluded on the point in 1972. After that, the princess began to visit the mansion twice a year, in the months of October or November and in February. The wayward princess, thousands of miles from London, had finally found that longed-for home where she could feel free.
Princess Margaret with a friend on a beach in Mustique on February 1, 1976.ANWAR HUSSEIN (GETTY IMAGES)
In the early 1970s, just over a dozen families resided in Mustique. Every afternoon, without exception, the owners took turns hosting the best parties of the time in their homes. They played cards until the wee hours of the morning and danced like there was no tomorrow. Alcohol also ran freely. Those who shared those evenings with Margaret affirm that a good bottle of Famous Grouse, her favorite brand of whiskey, and two packs of tobacco were never missing from the table.
How did the princess behave in an intimate gathering? She “could be very wild and unrestrained. And she could be very difficult. She liked to be spoiled and taken care of. If she felt well cared for, she was fun,” several sources say. They also say that, above all, she “was a royal person.” In fact, even with people she trusted most, no one dared to give her a kiss or a hug. Likewise, she had to be addressed as “her royal highness.” Even on the beach collecting shells, she had to be greeted with a bow. (Only the British were obliged to the latter; the Americans, if they wanted, could skip the protocol.) Everyone agrees that Margaret loved being surrounded by men, the younger the better.
Roddy Llewellyn, Princess Margaret's lover, in an image from February 1976, the year their relationship was discovered.ANWAR HUSSEIN (GETTY IMAGES)
In 1973, while she was still married, the Tennants introduced her to a landscape gardener named Roddy Llewellyn at their Scottish estate. He was 26 years old; she, 43. Previously, the British press had already speculated on the possibility that Margaret had been unfaithful to Lord Snowdon with personalities as varied as Mick Jagger, Peter Sellers, Warren Beatty and the actor John Bindon. But Roddy was different.
The couple did their best to hide their love, but in 1976 the now-defunct News of The World published some exclusive photographs of the two sharing more than a swim on one of the island’s paradisiacal beaches. The scandal was immediate. Antony Armstrong-Jones also had a mistress, Lucy Lindsay-Hogg, the ex-wife of filmmaker Michael Lindsay-Hogg. But unlike Margaret, nobody caught him red-handed. Although everyone knew that their marriage was not as idyllic as they made it look, those snapshots were the trigger for their divorce in 1978, the first by a member of British royalty since Henry VIII did the same in 1533. Margaret, no longer tied down, had free rein to continue her relationship with Roddy. However, she did not count on her young conquest confessing in 1981 that he was seeing Tatiana Soskin, the wife of film producer Paul Soskin. Said confession also occurred in Mustique.
Princess Margaret enjoying a bath with Roddy.ANWAR HUSSEIN (GETTY IMAGES)
In 1976, the paradisiacal island ceased to be a secret for most mortals for another more hedonistic reason. That year, on the occasion of Colin Tennant’s 50th birthday, the elite destination held the most notorious party to date. Besides spraying faux gold on Macaroni Beach, the Baron hired burly locals from the area, dressed in little more than a coconut shell as a loincloth, to entertain his exclusive diners. The photographs of that night, in which Margaret could be seen having a great time, soon reached the British newspapers. Thus was born the legend of Mustique, the place where the most extravagant would always be well received. The shindig was a marketing ploy orchestrated by Tennant to attract other rich and famous people. It worked. Mick Jagger and David Bowie rushed to build their own mansions on that untamed piece of land. Many others followed in their footsteps.
Mick Jagger and Jerry Hall on Mustique on February 18, 1987.GEORGES DE KEERLE (GETTY IMAGES)
Even Queen Elizabeth II fell for Mustique’s charms. In 1977 she, along with her husband, settled for a few days at Les Jolies Eaux. She wanted to see with her own eyes that paradise that her sister had told her so much about. According to the testimony of Anne Tennant, the Duke of Edinburgh upon arrival told Colin “I see you have ruined the island.” When he left, his opinion had changed radically: “I really like your island. I loved the time I spent here,” he informed him.
Princess Margaret and a group of her friends welcome Queen Elizabeth II on her visit to the island.PA IMAGES (PA IMAGES VIA GETTY IMAGES)
Margaret was happier than ever during the long seasons that she spent in Mustique. There she found her haven of peace, an escape from the frigid streets of London. What she did not imagine was that her dream would unexpectedly be cut short in 1999: she accidentally burned her feet in the bathtub at her island house. At first, she refused to be seen by a doctor and leave Les Jolies Eaux, but given the seriousness of her injuries, Anne herself called Buckingham Palace so that the queen would make her see reason. After a long talk between them, the princess agreed and took a flight to the British capital. Given her deteriorating health, she never got the chance to say goodbye to her beloved villa the way she would have wanted. With her passing in 2002, Mustique was no longer the same.
A look back at Queen Elizabeth’s memorable encounters with presidents and celebs
Throughout her 70 years on the throne, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch had met with some of history’s most famous people.Throughout her 70 years on the throne, Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, had met with some of history’s most notable public figures, including nearly every U.S. president since her reign began, as well as countless Hollywood celebrities.
Actor Raquel Welch shakes hands with Queen Elizabeth in March 1966.
Glamour overload: Queen Elizabeth meets the stars – in pictures
When stars align: the Queen has had celebrities, from Elizabeth Taylor and Marilyn Monroe to Paul McCartney and Frank Sinatra, queuing up to meet her throughout her reign
Saturday 17 September 2022
The Queen receiving Carol Ann Duffy at Buckingham Palace shortly after Duffy became the poet laureate in 2009.
Queen Elizabeth talks to actor Joan Collins during the Dramatic Arts reception at Buckingham Palace, February 2014
Elizabeth meets Hollywood actor Marilyn Monroe Miller, standing next to Victor Mature, during the Royal Film Performance, October 1956
Queen Elizabeth II during her 80th birthday celebrations at St. Paul’s Cathedral, London, England. Photo by Michael Gwyther-Jones on Flickr, CC BY 2.0.
The Caribbean responds to Queen Elizabeth II's complicated legacy
'Know your history...what exists was built upon blood and injustice'
After 70 years, London Bridge has fallen down: Queen Elizabeth II, the longest reigning monarch ever to occupy the British throne, passed away on September 8 at her beloved Balmoral Castle in Scotland, not long after her doctors revealed they were “concerned” for her health. She was 96 years old.
The queen had celebrated her platinum jubilee earlier this year. As part of the celebrations, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and his wife Catherine, embarked upon a Caribbean tour and were met with some resistance over lingering issues related to colonisation. In Belize, for instance, the Q’eqchi Maya community organised protests over indigenous land rights, while in Jamaica, people were calling for an apology from the British royal family for its role in the transatlantic slave trade.
The question of reparations was also top of mind. In 2015, former British prime minister David Cameron refused to entertain any discussion around reparations, advising Jamaicans to “get over slavery.” Instead, he pledged to build a new prison on the island, which only added insult to injury. During the queen's jubilee tour, however, Prince William stopped just short of an apology.
Such a fraught history has left many in the region attempting to achieve a fine balance between acknowledging a lifededicated to duty and service, and wrestling with a legacy that inflicted its share of pain and struggle.
On a thread in the history-focused Facebook group Angelo Bissessarsingh‘s Virtual Museum of Trinidad and Tobago, members remembered Elizabeth II as carrying herself “with dignity and grace,” doing “a lot for the country and the Commonwealth,” and fulfilling her duties as queen “to the very end.”
Just two days before she died, the queen carried out what would be her final constitutional duty, formally appointing the 15th prime minister of her long reign. Trinidadian Mark Edghill paid tribute on Facebook:
May she Rest Peacefully now after honoring her vow to give her whole life to serving as the Queen of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth. Committed to duty, tradition and protocols. A symbol and pilar of strength and stability across the globe. Transcending decades of cultural changes, development and technological advancement. Truly the end of an era!
The Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago examined the queen's “deep legacy through the history of Trinidad and Tobago’s currency,” while in Jamaica — where the queen was head of state — a national day of mourning was declared for September 18, with the admonition that no celebratory events should take place.
In 1954, two years after Queen Elizabeth II ascended to the throne, a young poet, himself just a year younger than the then 27-year-old monarch, was thrown into a jail for protesting the rule of the British Empire over the tiny South American colonial territory he was born into, British Guiana. The picture [accompanying Johnson's post] shows that poet, Martin Carter (glasses), being detained along with Cheddi Jagan who was at the time leading the fight for independence from Her Majesty's Empire.
That movement would be met with violence from the Crown's government, the deployment of British troops to the tiny place that we know today as Guyana.
Of that era, Carter would write: ‘This is the dark time, my love, All round the land brown beetles crawl about. The shining sun is hidden in the sky Red flowers bend their heads in awful sorrow. This is the dark time, my love, It is the season of oppression, dark metal, and tears. It is the festival of guns, the carnival of misery. Everywhere the faces of men are strained and anxious. Who comes walking in the dark night time? Whose boot of steel tramps down the slender grass? It is the man of death, my love, the strange invader Watching you sleep and aiming at your dream.’
Know your history. You have been fed a carefully curated image of cups of tea and crumpets and curtsies and corgis when what exists was built upon blood and injustice.
Guyana-born historian, Professor Richard Drayton, who spent much of his life in Barbados — the most recent Caribbean territory to become a republic — compared Elizabeth II with American singer Chuck Berry and Cuban revolutionary Fidel Castro, “three lives which marked the late 20th-century world in very different ways”:
All three were themselves boundary stones of an age in which an anti-Democratic, racist world order, that world of empire and Jim Crow, of cap doffing and acceptance of status inequality which had endured for centuries was suddenly turned upside down.
I was born in what was then still a British colony and throughout my primary school days the light blue covered exercise books all had her coronation portrait on the cover. We all used to draw on her, black out the odd tooth to make an inky gap in the royal mouth, and sometimes add a moustache. These acts of defacement were not anti-monarchical in impulse, but certainly were minor acts of rebellion against the many kinds of authority of which we somehow knew she was an anchor.
This is what will be suppressed in this season of compulsory mass emotions, however benign and well-meaning E2 was as a flesh and blood person, of which neither you nor I have concrete knowledge, the Queen’s other body, the official one, symbolised absolute un-democratic right derived from status not contract. She outlived Chuck and Fidel, but she was a guardian of the past, they ambassadors from the future.
Noting that “the corporate-state media engines will seek to manipulate these mass emotions, this cloud of industrially-produced sentimentality about the past, to shape the present and control the future,” Drayton warned:
Against this witchcraft you need to wield your apotropaic charms: whenever they mention Liz, fuse her with Fidel and Chuck, they will be her psychopomps, escorting her to freedom. Set her free to wear fatigues, smoke cigars, and duck walk into eternity.
Trinbagonian LGBTQ+ activist Jason Jones, who is based in the UK, summed up the flood of reactions this way:
So… a landmark moment in our lives. Loss. Hate. Frustration. Admiration. Fire. We are all twisted in our ideas of mourning & respect.
Despite it all, Trinbagonian Dionne Ligoure maintained:
Say wha all yuh want she was DUTIFUL to the end.
Regional radio personality Wayne LeBlanc, meanwhile, noted:
The BBC will now take all broadcast Networks to School as coverage of Passing of QE 11 begins
Queen Elizabeth II will lie in rest for 24 hours at Edinburgh's St. Giles’ Cathedral, where members of the public will be allowed to pay their respects. Her body will then be flown to London, where she will lie in state ahead of her funeral, which is expected to take place in about 10 days’ time at Westminster Abbey in London.
[Editor's Note (September 10, 2022, 3:54 PM AST): An earlier version of this article referred to a letter written by “members of the UNC.” The article has been amended to remove this erroneous reference.]