Queen Elizabeth II opens her red box including the day of her 70th anniversary – Royal Stories

This February 7, Queen Elizabeth II begins the first day of her 70th year of reign. To serve has been Her Majesty’s sole will since her ascension to the throne in 1952. Today, like yesterday and tomorrow, Elizabeth II carries out her constitutional duties. To mark its sense of duty, Buckingham has released a new photo of Queen Elizabeth II in front of her famous red box.

Read also: Elizabeth II wants Camilla to become Queen

Elizabeth II pictured facing her red box for her Platinum Jubilee

For 70 years, Queen Elizabeth II has opened her red box every day. The Queen receives mail and affairs of state in this box. His private secretaries slip him the major national dailies of the day. But above all, the red boxes contain documents that allow the Queen to be kept informed of current events in Parliament but also concerning affairs in the various Commonwealth countries. Finally, Her Majesty finds there the documents requiring her signature and royal assent.

To mark its Platinum Jubilee year, Buckingham Palace released a unique photo of the Queen on February 6. In this photo, Queen Elizabeth II is seated in her chair, facing an open red box in front of her. Never shy of slipping in hidden messages. Note the portrait of her father, King George VI, placed in a frame behind her. The celebration of his ascension to the throne also inevitably coincides with the commemoration of the day of death of King George VI.

Among the other symbols hidden in this photo, the Elizabeth II worn brooch stands out. This brooch set with diamonds is composed of two pieces in ivy leaves. The brooch was a gift from her mother, Queen Mother Elizabeth, on her 21st birthday.

The red boxes are made by Barrow Hepburn & Gale and cost around £1000 to manufacture, according to the British government. The monarch is not the only one with its red boxes. These are used by all ministers to transport and contain confidential documents but also by governors general and lieutenant governors. This tradition has always endured and is the continuity of the ministerial shipping boxes that have existed for centuries. Made of pine, the boxes are lined with a lead bottom. As some political personalities have made it a tradition to keep the box at the end of their mandate, it is necessary to buy boxes regularly. The BBC reports that between 2002 and 2007, the UK government spent over €67,700 (£57,260) buying red boxes.

Nicholas Fontaine

Chief Editor

Nicolas Fontaine has been a freelance web editor since 2014. After having been a copywriter and author for numerous Belgian and French brands and media, he specialized in royalty news. Nicolas is now editor-in-chief of Histoires royales. [email protected]