Elizabeth II met with three Soviet leaders, one Russian leader and many celebrities during her long reign.
After ascending the British throne in 1952, Queen Elizabeth II had many meetings with prominent foreign leaders and others. Over the years, she also had the opportunity to become acquainted with Russia, having both received the country’s dignitaries and even once paid a state visit herself.
Those occasions did not necessarily follow strict royal protocol to a ‘T’, as RT explains.
FILE PHOTO. Yuri Gagarin, Queen Elizabeth II and his London visit in July 1961.
Yuri Gagarin
Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin was the first to go to space. Even though tensions existed between Moscow and the West at that time, Gagarin set off on a worldwide tour shortly after his return from the mission. He also visited the UK. He was welcomed by Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip in London on July 14, 1961. According to TASS Gagarin ate a piece of lemon cake from his tea cup at one point, while the Queen took his advice.
Moreover, Andrew Morton’s book ‘The Queen’ claims the first man in space even put his hand on the monarch’s leg just above the knee, presumably to make sure she was real.
Recounting their time together, Elizabeth II said of Gagarin in March 2021: “He was fascinating, and I suppose being the first one it was particularly fascinating.’’
FILE PHOTO. Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev (L) converses with Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle at the end of Gorbachev’s official visit to Great Britain on April 7, 1989.
Mikhail Gorbachev
Her Majesty hosted the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in Windsor Castle, April 7, 1989. He, in turn, invited the royal family to pay a visit to his country, to which the Queen responded by expressing hope she could avail herself of the opportunity at a later, “convenient ” time.
In two years’ time, the Soviet Union was dissolved and Gorbachev left office.
Boris Yeltsin
Russia’s first post-Soviet leader, Boris Yeltsin, met the Queen twice. First, the Queen met Boris Yeltsin during his November 1992 visit to London. The Russian President broke protocol several times with excessive affection, according to KA Bishop (foreign office translator).
Apart from getting a “Half hug on HRH The Duke of York ,” President Yeltsin “also twice took the Queen’s arm and once even attempted to encircle her waist, but was thwarted (without offence being given) by the effortless skill of one with years of training ,” Bishop recounted.
FILE PHOTO. FILE PHOTO.
Russia’s only official visit
On October 17, 1994 the couple, two years after their initial visit, paid the only official (per protocol) trip to Russia. This three-day event marked the first visit by a British monarch to Russian soil. The Russian and Western press alike were quick to describe the Queen’s arrival as a historic indication of a major improvement in relations between Moscow and the West.
Yeltsin hosted a grand banquet that was appropriate for the occasion.
Because many of the jewels in her collection are from Imperial Russia, it was of particular importance that the Queen choose which pieces of jewelry she would wear while in Russia. Her Majesty’s grandmother, Queen Mary, had bought the jewels from descendants of aristocratic Russian refugees after the 1917 revolution.
Elizabeth II chose gems that were not connected to Russian history’s dramatic pages. Media reports at the time suggested that this was an attempt to not cause any offense.
FILE PHOTO. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Queen Elizabeth 2 at Buckingham Palace June 24, 2003
Vladimir Putin
During a visit to Great Britain, President Vladimir Putin (who succeeded Yeltsin as Kremlin president) also met the Queen on June 24, 2003.
Reports in British media claim that Russia’s leader was late 14 minutes to meet with the monarch.
Speaking at a dinner at Spencer House two days later, the Russian leader praised the fact that Russia and the UK had attained a level of “A mature, promising partnership .” New relations made it possible to unite the potentials of the two countries to address common problems, the Kremlin said at the time.
FILE PHOTO. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Queen Elizabeth 2 at Buckingham Palace June 24, 2003
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