Memories of Queen Elizabeth II from her many visits to Cambridgeshire
By Chris Elliott
The Queen’s death has sent a shock wave rippling through our region – and many people will be rekindling memories of seeing her on her many visits here.
She held a special place in her heart for our beautiful towns and cities, particularly Cambridge, Ely and Newmarket. Back in the Sixties she was a regular visitor to the university city, making a number of official engagements and several less formal ones too - to see her son, Prince Charles, then a student at Trinity College. On one occasion, in 1969, the Prince served her probably the most down-to-earth lunch she has ever had, in his rooms – steak and kidney pie, mashed potatoes and peas.
Her first visit to Cambridge as monarch came in 1955, when she was asked to open a brand-new facility for Cambridge University, the School of Veterinary Medicine, known now as the Vet School. She also went to three colleges, Newnham, Girton and Trinity, and to the Guildhall where she came out onto the balcony to wave to thousands of people gathered in the market square.
Another of her best-remembered early official visits to the region was in 1962. She went to Papworth, meeting doctors and nurses at the hospital and staff from Papworth Industries, and also to Addenbrooke's Hospital. The hospital had not long been on its new site at Hills Road, and ranks of nurses in their distinctive capes lined up to applaud her. She also went to King's College that day, and huge crowds from town and gown alike lined the route to cheer her.
In 1969, the new Queen got a first-hand introduction to Cambridge science in action, when she was given a tour of the National Institute of Agricultural Botany in Huntingdon Road.
The institute had a worldwide reputation for ground-breaking research into plants, including tackling crop diseases and developing new varieties of potatoes and other vegetables, and at the time of the Queen’s visit it was celebrating a birthday of its own - its golden jubilee.
In 1973, another anniversary brought her back to the region - the 13th centenary of the founding of the Ship of the Fens, Ely Cathedral. Her visit made history, in more ways than one. It was only the second visit there by a reigning monarch in 700 years – and while she was there, she gave permission for Ely to retain its city status, which it was just about to lose.
Four years later in 1977, the Queen celebrated her silver jubilee – 25 years since her accession - and Cambridge and other major towns went party-crazy. Streets were closed off to traffic and residents set up trestle tables that were soon groaning with mountains of food. Parades, sports competitions and a host of other events were also held, and flags and bunting were everywhere.
That year also saw a visit by the Queen to Cambridge, to meet people at one of the city’s newer colleges, Wolfson.
The Royal family are well known for their love of horses, and the Queen is perhaps the biggest fan of all, so it is no wonder she has also made Newmarket a favourite port of call during her reign.
Her first official trip there was to open the National Stud, and she was a little late, which proved to be lucky for one of the spectators waiting excitedly to see her. A few minutes before the Royal cavalcade was due, an elderly onlooker was overcome by the heat and collapsed across the narrow entrance road to the Jockey Club. The woman recovered just in time to be helped clear of the royal cars as they arrived.
In 1981, the Queen came to open another brand new Cambridge college, Robinson, built with a £17 million gift from Newmarket philanthropist David Robinson. The mega-rich businessman was due to be at the college to have lunch with Her Majesty – but he failed to turn up.
Three years later came the opening of Cambridge’s Grafton shopping centre, and the city was swamped with people eager to see the Queen. Accompanied by Prince Philip, she toured the shops and then delighted the crowds by going walkabout in Fitzroy Street. It was one of the occasions when the Queen seemed at her most relaxed.
Hazel Halter, then mayoress of Cambridge, got to meet the Queen. Hazel said: “I was astonished when I was presented to her, and she said: 'Oh, Hazel Halter – I believe your mother’s here too, isn’t she?' I later found out that someone had told her that my mother, who was then 83, was among the party hosted by the C&A shop.
“The Queen asked if we could go and meet her, so I took her over and introduced her to my mother. Like me, my mother was very surprised, and she told me later that had she known she was going to meet the Queen, she would have worn a nicer dress. It was a wonderful day for Cambridge. The Queen was smiling at the crowds, and such an easy person to talk to. I will always remember it.”
The Eighties also saw the Queen back in the city informally, to visit another of her sons - Edward, who was studying at Jesus College.
The young prince was mad-keen on the theatre and had become very involved in campus drama, as well as the student charity Rag events. In 1985, his mother allowed him his first patronage, for Cambridge Youth Theatre, and she came along to see him and meet members of the young company.
The Queen also returned to Ely in 1987, when she attended a service at the cathedral, handing out specially-minted coins called Maundy money to 120 old folk from the diocese.
During the Nineties, the Queen made a remarkable EIGHT appearances in our region. She came on three occasions in the space of 10 months in 1991, first to open the architecturally-acclaimed new terminal building at Stansted Airport, then to visit the East of England Show, and finally to attend at service in King’s College Chapel to mark the college’s 550th anniversary.
In November 1993, she went along to a very different educational institution, Cambridge Regional College, where she unveiled the first phase of the college’s new buildings. Ironically, her car got stuck in traffic on the way there – on Elizabeth Way, the road opened in the city more than 20 years earlier in a bid to cut congestion.
The following year, she made a return trip to the Vet School, unveiling a plaque in the Small Animals Wing, and in 1995, she did the honours at the opening of a new lecture theatre at Queens’ College.
More Cambridge University facilities got the royal stamp of approval in 1996. The Queen opened a new library at Jesus College, and new student accommodation blocks at Burrell’s Field for Trinity College. She also opened the soaring Law Faculty building in Sidgwick Avenue, and visited the Judge Institute of Management Studies, the building once occupied by the old Addenbrooke’s Hospital.
And in 1997, she met a movie star, Charlton Heston, at the unveiling of the American Air Museum at Duxford. Heston was a pilot for the United States Air Force in his younger days, and more than 4,000 USAF veterans joined him to cheer her Majesty as she declared the £12 million museum officially open to the public.
Her long association with our region has continued into the 21st century. In the year 2000, she came to the region twice, to open another Cambridge University facility, the Faculty of Divinity.
One of her most memorable visits to Cambridge was in 2007, when she gave the royal seal of approval to Cambridge’s Biomedical Campus.
In 2011, she visited St John’s College to mark its 500th anniversary.
She also thrilled crowds by inaugurating Cambridge's Sainsbury Laboratory in 2011, and in 2013 she opened the new Rosie maternity hospital – and also had a ride on the guided bus.
In 2016, she had an affectionate meeting with her grandson, Prince William, when he was a pilot for the East Anglian Air Ambulance.
The Duke of Cambridge, who began work as a co-pilot at the charity in July 2015, had just returned from a call-out earlier in the morning when he welcomed his grandmother the Queen with a kiss.
She also visited Newmarket in 2016, when a statue was unveiled for her 90th birthday.
Her last visit to Cambridge came in July 2019 when she officially opened the new Royal Papworth Hospital on Cambridge Biomedical Campus.
She was greeted by huge cheering crowds.
The Queen’s visit that day began with a morning at the National Institute of Agricultural Botany (NIAB) in Histon.
It was followed by a trip to Queens’ College, which included lunch, and finally a tour of the Royal Papworth Hospital, where she unveiled a plaque commemorating the opening of the site.
