Over her 70 year reign, the late Queen Elizabeth II was hosted by American presidents and visited Washington, D.C. on several occasions. We look back on her relationship with the people of D.C.
Queen Elizabeth II, who died Thursday at 96, was no stranger to Washington, D.C. She had strong diplomatic ties with American leaders and also to a local neighborhood.
Britain’s longest-serving monarch made a number of royal visits to the District, starting in 1951. For many residents, though, a 1991 visit was most memorable.
The royal couple and first lady Laura Bush visited Children’s National Hospital.
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In the Marshall Heights neighborhood of Southeast D.C., she got a royal welcome and strolled along Drake Place SE.
Unaware of royal etiquette, Alice Frazier, 67, welcomed the queen into her home with a great big hug, which the queen graciously accepted.
At the Boys & Girls Club on Benning Road, the queen saw basketball and double-dutch, and young people got to meet her.
In honor of her visit, the D.C. Council renamed a four-block stretch of Drake Place SE in the queen’s honor. It’s known to this day as Queen’s Stroll SE.
The Queen’s Royal Visits to DC
From her first visit to D.C. in 1951, the 25-year-old princess drew a crowd of well-wishers. President Harry Truman welcomed her to Washington.
During her reign, the queen met with 13 sitting presidents — more than any foreign leader. The meetings played a major role in fostering the special diplomatic relationship between the U.S. and U.K., as well as the queen’s relationship with our presidents.
After President Dwight Eisenhower hosted her first state visit in 1957, the two exchanged letters. She shared her grilled scone recipe.
The queen danced at the White House with President Gerald Ford during the 1976 bicentennial celebrations and rode horses with President Ronald Reagan.
She hosted presidents Kennedy, Nixon, Carter, Reagan and George H.W. Bush, all at Buckingham Palace.
Always warmly received in official Washington, the queen often spoke of her commitment to the U.S.-U.K. friendship.
“Mr. President, I raise my glass to you and Mrs. Bush,” she told President George W. Bush in a toast. “To the friendship between our two countries and to the health, freedom, prosperity and happiness of the people of the United States of America.”
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