Parades, trees and a horse: How France is celebrating the Queen's Jubilee
The United Kingdom is gearing up for four full days of parades, concerts, horse races, and general celebration to mark the Queen's Platinum Jubilee - and France is also getting in on the action.
In Paris, President Emmanuel Macron will pay tribute to the Queen of England with a special ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe on Thursday to mark her 70 years on the throne.
Speaking in a video message to the Queen on Thursday, June 2nd, President Macron called her "the golden thread that binds our two countries" going back to World War II.
He added, in English, that: "During the past seventy years, the President of the French Republic has relied on very few constants... your devotion to our alliance and to our friendship has remained."
Madame,
Your Majesty, pic.twitter.com/NIKB7wNTBy
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) June 2, 2022
The celebration at the Arc de Triomphe will involve UK Ambassador, Menna Rawlings, where she and the French President will be "rekindling the flame of the Nation" and laying a wreath on the tomb of the Unknown Soldier. It is worth noting that these monuments will therefore be closed to the public from 2pm to 8:30pm on Thursday.
The British national anthem - God save the Queen - will be played by the Royal Regiment of Scotland band, which will be followed by a rendition of the Marseillaise, played by the Republican Guard orchestra.
The British Embassy in Paris also hosted a party on Wednesday, where invited guests enjoyed a firework display, music from English, Scottish, and Northern Irish musicians, plus the best of British cuisine and drinks.
A photo of the garden party at the British Embassy
The French President's gift to the Queen, a riding enthusiast, was a horse. The horse, Fabuleu de Maucour, is seven years old and hails from Meuse, in Eastern France.
For the #PlatinumJubilee, President @EmmanuelMacron, on behalf of France, pays tribute to HM The Queen by honouring her passion for horses. Fabuleu de Maucour, a 🐎"Selle Français", was presented today in #Windsor with a ceremonial saddle & a cavalry sabre. @RoyalFamily
📹 @AFP pic.twitter.com/9eFt2K4bRl
— French Embassy UK🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@FranceintheUK) June 1, 2022
General Eric Bio Farina told Ouest-France that the animal is "the flagship horse of the regiment's cavalry," and that he hopes its gray coloring and wise temperament will please the Queen.
In addition, the Queen of England also received a saddle and a saber from the Republican Guard - gifts which reportedly arrived at Windsor Castle on Wednesday, June 1st.
Paris is not the only part of France to be paying tribute - in Ver-sur-Mer in Normandy, an avenue of trees will be planted by the Municipal Youth Council at the British Memorial, which commemorates the two countries' shared history and remembers the 22,442 people who died during the Battle of Normandy in 1944.
The tree-planting is in step with "The Queen's Green Canopy" project, in which the Queen has called on UK nationals to plant trees in celebration of her Platinum Jubilee.
If you want to follow the festivities in the UK from afar, you can watch it on Paris Première, which will broadcast the BBC's "Platinum Party" on Saturday, June 4th from 9pm onward. The concert will be also available to watch for free on 6PLAY.
In her 70 years as queen, Her Majesty will have reigned during the mandates of ten different French presidents. When she took the throne in 1952, it was during the mandate of Vincent Auriol - the first president of the IVth Republic.
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In Paris, President Emmanuel Macron will pay tribute to the Queen of England with a special ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe on Thursday to mark her 70 years on the throne.
Speaking in a video message to the Queen on Thursday, June 2nd, President Macron called her "the golden thread that binds our two countries" going back to World War II.
He added, in English, that: "During the past seventy years, the President of the French Republic has relied on very few constants... your devotion to our alliance and to our friendship has remained."
Madame,
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) June 2, 2022
Your Majesty, pic.twitter.com/NIKB7wNTBy
The celebration at the Arc de Triomphe will involve UK Ambassador, Menna Rawlings, where she and the French President will be "rekindling the flame of the Nation" and laying a wreath on the tomb of the Unknown Soldier. It is worth noting that these monuments will therefore be closed to the public from 2pm to 8:30pm on Thursday.
The British national anthem - God save the Queen - will be played by the Royal Regiment of Scotland band, which will be followed by a rendition of the Marseillaise, played by the Republican Guard orchestra.
The British Embassy in Paris also hosted a party on Wednesday, where invited guests enjoyed a firework display, music from English, Scottish, and Northern Irish musicians, plus the best of British cuisine and drinks.
The French President's gift to the Queen, a riding enthusiast, was a horse. The horse, Fabuleu de Maucour, is seven years old and hails from Meuse, in Eastern France.
For the #PlatinumJubilee, President @EmmanuelMacron, on behalf of France, pays tribute to HM The Queen by honouring her passion for horses. Fabuleu de Maucour, a 🐎"Selle Français", was presented today in #Windsor with a ceremonial saddle & a cavalry sabre. @RoyalFamily
— French Embassy UK🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@FranceintheUK) June 1, 2022
📹 @AFP pic.twitter.com/9eFt2K4bRl
General Eric Bio Farina told Ouest-France that the animal is "the flagship horse of the regiment's cavalry," and that he hopes its gray coloring and wise temperament will please the Queen.
In addition, the Queen of England also received a saddle and a saber from the Republican Guard - gifts which reportedly arrived at Windsor Castle on Wednesday, June 1st.
Paris is not the only part of France to be paying tribute - in Ver-sur-Mer in Normandy, an avenue of trees will be planted by the Municipal Youth Council at the British Memorial, which commemorates the two countries' shared history and remembers the 22,442 people who died during the Battle of Normandy in 1944.
The tree-planting is in step with "The Queen's Green Canopy" project, in which the Queen has called on UK nationals to plant trees in celebration of her Platinum Jubilee.
If you want to follow the festivities in the UK from afar, you can watch it on Paris Première, which will broadcast the BBC's "Platinum Party" on Saturday, June 4th from 9pm onward. The concert will be also available to watch for free on 6PLAY.
In her 70 years as queen, Her Majesty will have reigned during the mandates of ten different French presidents. When she took the throne in 1952, it was during the mandate of Vincent Auriol - the first president of the IVth Republic.
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