Victoria residents commemorate Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee

Vancouver Island residents have been monitoring the Royal Platinum Jubilee celebrations and celebrating the Queen.

The weekend festivities in London, England drew large crowds as people wanted to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s 70-year reign.

Bruce Hallsor, with the Monarchist League of Canada’s Victoria chapter, said this is a truly historic event.

“In 1,000 years of this monarchy, this is the first Platinum Jubilee,” Hallsor said. “It’s a pretty rare event and none of us are going to see one again.”

Queen Elizabeth is the only British Monarch to serve for seven decades.

The celebrations in London included parades, military flyovers and family gatherings at Buckingham Palace.

They also marked a moment of transition as the Queen has had some recent health scares.

“No one wants to really talk about the Queen’s fragility at this point, but I think they accept that at her age, the Queen will have to take on fewer duties and they feel that transition is going very smoothly,” Sarika Bose, with the University of British Columbia, said.

Hallsor added that the Queen has made a number of stops in Victoria, including one visit in 1983 that drew massive crowds to the Inner Harbour.

“She’s always done her duty,” he said.

Most Vancouver Island residents couldn’t make it to the events in London, but a few that spoke to CHEK News Sunday said they have been watching from home, adding Queen Elizabeth is a wonderful person and a great role model.

In a tweet from the Royal Family, the Queen said she has been humbled and touched that people have taken to the streets to celebrate the jubilee, adding she remains committed to service to her best abilities with the support of her family.

Hallsor said there will be more jubilee celebrations in Victoria throughout the summer, including free concerts at Government House starting in July.

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