The U.K. and the Commonwealth countries will celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee in early June, to commemorate seven decades of her service.
The queen, who is 96, first ascended to the throne in February 1952 when she was only 25, after her father King George VI died.
There are many celebrations planned during the four-day weekend to mark her Jubilee, ranging from tea parties and concerts, to church services and military parades.
Here's an explainer of what to expect.
When Is The Queen's Platinum Jubilee?
It is the first time a Platinum Jubilee has been celebrated for a monarch in British history. The queen already broke the record for being the longest-reigning British monarch back in September 2015, when she overtook Queen Victoria, who ruled for 63 years and 216 days.
The unprecedented anniversary will be celebrated over a long bank holiday weekend in the U.K, from Thursday June 2 to Sunday June 5.
What Is the Queen's Platinum Jubilee?
The platinum jubilee marks 70 years of service of Her Majesty The Queen to the people of the United Kingdom, the Realms and the Commonwealth.
Four days of celebrations will be held throughout the long weekend across the U.K.
Queen's Platinum Jubilee Schedule
On June 2, the Queen's Birthday Parade will be begin at 11 a.m. (6:00 a.m. ET) at Horse Guards Parade, central London, close to Buckingham Palace.
According to the official Royal Family website, the 1st Battalion, Irish Guards, and more than 1,200 officers and soldiers from the Household Division will display a military pageantry known as "trooping the colour," together with hundreds of Army musicians and around 240 horses.
A Royal Gun Salute will be fired during the march. At the end of the parade, the Royal Family's balcony appearance will happen, like on previous birthdays. There will be a flypast to coincide with the balcony appearance.
The U.K. has a tradition of celebrating Royal Jubilees, weddings and coronations with a lighting of beacons, which will continue over the Platinum Jubilee. More than 1,500 beacons will be lit through the U.K. and its overseas territories.
The Principal beacon, which will include The Tree of Trees—a 21-meter-high (nearly 70 feet) structure constructed of 350 smaller trees—will be lit in a special ceremony at Buckingham Palace at 9 p.m. (4 p.m. ET). Thousands of other beacons will be lit in communities and in the 54 capital cities of the Commonwealth.
On Friday June 3, there will be a Service of Thanksgiving for the queen's reign held at London's St. Paul's Cathedral.
The next day, the Queen and other members of the Royal Family will attend the Derby horse racing event at Epsom Downs, Surrey.
On Saturday, there will be Platinum Party outside Buckingham Palace, which will see 10,000 members of the public attend the event to see some of the biggest names in music and entertainment, including Stephen Fry, Alicia Keys, Diana Ross, Duran Duran, Queen + Adam Lambert, Nile Rodgers and naturalist David Attenborough. The concert will be streamed on the BBC. Some 22,000 people are to attend overall—including the 10,000 via public ballot and 5,000 key workers, such as doctors and nurses.
On Sunday June 5, there will be thousands of Jubilee lunches across the country to celebrate the queen's reign. More than 60,000 people have registered to host these lunches, according to the Royal Family's website.
The long weekend will end with the Platinum Jubilee Pageant. Although not all of the details have been released, the Pageant is expected to reflect on iconic moments from the queen's reign and British society over the last seven decades.
The Gold State Carriage, led by The Sovereign's Escort, will lead the Pageant. However, the queen will not be traveling in the carriage. The event will culminate with the national anthem, "God Save The Queen," while thousands of people pay their tributes.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Jack Dutton is a Newsweek Reporter based in Cape Town, South Africa. His focus is reporting on global politics and ... Read more
