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It’s been 70 years since Queen Elizabeth II took the throne to become the longest-reigning monarch.
Her Platinum Jubilee is being celebrated on Sunday.
“It’s a pretty big day,” said Regina resident Al Nicholson. “You think of how long she’s reigned … What she thinks of us, God only knows. At her age, it’s quite remarkable.”
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth took the throne in 1952 after the death of her father, King George VI. She is the first sovereign to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee.
The Queen has visited Saskatchewan six times, most recently in 2005.
Nicholson had the chance to meet Queen Elizabeth while in England as part of the RCMP Musical Ride.
As a young man in 1969, Nicholson was in charge of a team that took the black horse Burmese from the barracks and walked it through the town of Windsor, up to Windsor Castle to be presented as a gift to the Queen.
Burmese was a horse born in Cypress Hills and has a statue cast in its honour in front of the Saskatchewan Legislature in Regina.
Once delivering the horse to the Queen, Nicholson’s job was to act as a backdrop during the presentation. He said he didn’t quite get to meet her, but did have an “encounter” with her.
“She came down the stairs and she met the riding master and Burmese and at some point in time when getting set up, she walked over to where I was standing … she started walking over to me,” Nicholson recalled.
“My head is going crazy trying to remember what the protocol people said you’re supposed to do if the Queen or member of the Royal Family approaches you or speaks to you.”
Nicholson said he could not remember anything he’d been told about addressing a member of the Royal Family.
The Queen reached Nicholson’s horse and stopped.
“She said something to the horse, gave him a little pet, and to my great relief, she turned around and went back,” Nicholson said.
“It was just a simple little job that I was happy to be involved with because I was there.”
Nicholson said his impression of Her Majesty has stayed with him since that day. He remembered Queen Elizabeth being “very regal coming down, very relaxed and wearing a beautiful coat/dress … and the purse on her arm,” he said.
“Very pleasant, very professional.”
As a leader in the free world, Nicholson commented that the Queen “has a rank at the top” in how she conducts herself. Knowing some of the hardship she has gone through during her 70 years on the throne, Nicholson called her a “very classy lady.”
“As time passes and you get older and you think of your life, that was a pretty neat experience I had,” Nicholson reflected.
A flag is being raised in honour of the celebration at the Saskatchewan Legislative Building and Government House in Regina on Sunday. According to a release, the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Flag will be flown for the remainder of the month at Government House and will also be flown on the Albert Memorial Bridge in Regina between Feb. 15 and 28.
The commemorative flag features a Canadian Jubilee emblem on a white background. Further Platinum Jubilee celebrations and programs in Saskatchewan will be announced in coming months, according to the province.
To the Queen on her Platinum Jubilee, Nicholson sent his best.
“I wish her well and I thank her for her service …,” he said. “May her reign continue as long as she’s able to do it.”
