1961: Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip
Queen Elizabeth made her first trip to India in January and February of 1961. She also visited Pakistan.
Queen Elizabeth was the first monarch to be crowned after India’s independence from British colonial rule. Together, she and Prince Phillip toured Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata.
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip ride through Delhi during their 1961 state visit to India. It was the first visit by a reigning British monarch since India gained independence in 1947.
The Queen and Philip join President Rajendra Prasad, India’s first president, at a reception at Rashtrapati Bhavan following the Republic Day parade, where the queen was the guest of honor.
The queen chats with Tenzing Norgay, the Sherpa mountaineer who reached the summit of Mount Everest with Edmund Hillary in 1953, during a reception at Rashtrapati Bhavan, the presidential residence. Prince Philip stands nearby, partly hidden from view.
In Gujarat, the Queen meets Mehdi Nawaz Jung, the state’s first governor, at Raj Bhavan, the governor’s residence in Ahmedabad.
Later that day, the royal couple greets performers after a show of garba, a traditional folk dance from Gujarat.
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip pay their respects at Raj Ghat, the memorial in New Delhi marking the site where Mahatma Gandhi was cremated after his assassination in 1948. Gandhi led India’s nonviolent movement for independence from British rule, making the royal couple’s visit a meaningful gesture early in the country’s relationship with the crown after 1947.
The royals tour the Taj Mahal, the 17th-century marble mausoleum that remains one of the world’s most famous monuments.
1973: Prince Philip
Prince Philip talks with Mother Teresa after she received a prize of £34,000 for her progress in religion. The honor, known as the Templeton Prize, recognized her work caring for the poor in Calcutta.
1980: Prince Charles
King Charles, then the Prince of Wales, tours the Taj Mahal during his first official visit to India in 1980. Twelve years later, Princess Diana would famously pose alone in front of the same monument.
A local woman honors Charles with a garland of red flowers and a red mark on his forehead. Flower garlands are a traditional Indian welcome for guests of honor, and the mark, known as a tilak, is often applied as a blessing.
Charles sips coconut water through a straw, wearing another garland of flowers from his welcome.
A lifelong polo player, Charles takes to the field at the Jaipur Polo Grounds in New Delhi during his 1980 tour.
Charles visits Mother Teresa at her mission in Calcutta, now known as Kolkata, where the nun cared for the city’s poorest residents.
1983: Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip
England’s longest reigning monarch returned to India for 10 days in November 1983.
Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and President Zail Singh welcome the royals at Palam Airport in New Delhi. The visit coincided with the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, which India hosted that year.
1985: Princess Anne
The Princess Royal visits a children’s home run by Mother Teresa’s mission in Calcutta, now known as Kolkata. Anne, who has long devoted herself to charity work for young people, was following in the footsteps of her brother, Prince Charles, who met Mother Teresa in the city five years earlier.
Rachel King (she/her) is a news writer at Town & Country. Before joining T&Cshe spent nearly a decade as an editor at Fortune. Her work covering travel and lifestyle has appeared in Forbes, Observer, Robb Report, Cruise Criticand Cool Huntingamong others. Originally from San Francisco, she lives in New York with her wife, their daughter, and a precocious labradoodle. Follow her on Instagram at .
Elizabeth Angell is a journalist and editor who writes about style, travel, parenting, and the British Royal Family. She has written for The New York Times and Town & Country and was most recently the Editor in Chief of Romper. She lives in Brooklyn, New York with her family.
Watch Next
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
Readers Also Read
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
Source: www.townandcountrymag.com
