The Lieutenancy of Orkney
Her Majesty's Platinum Jubilee, 2022
Royal Jubilees are an occasion to celebrate the life and reign of a monarch, and are significant events which are celebrated around the world. Though the concept of the jubilee began in biblical times, today the term is most closely associated with the Royal Family, and the ceremony and spectacle which the term symbolises.
To mark and celebrate The Queen's 70 year reign there will be year-long Platinum Jubilee celebrations throughout the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth and around the world as communities come together to share in this remarkable achievement.
The main Jubilee celebration weekend was held from Thursday 2 to Sunday 5 June marking 70 years since the Queen's Coronation which was held on 2 June 1953 at Westminster Abbey in London. Her father, King George VI died on 6 February and it was on this date that Princess Elizabeth became Queen. She was just 25 years old.
Taking Part
Here are some of the ways communities came together to celebrate the Jubilee.
Beacon lighting
Beacons were lit across the UK on Thursday 2 June.
Community Get-togethers and Street Parties
There's nothing better than getting together to celebrate and it was lovely to see folk enjoying themselves by marking the Platinum Jubilee.
The Queen’s Green Canopy (QGC) was a unique, UK-wide tree planting initiative created to mark Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022, by inviting people to “Plant a Tree for the Jubilee.
The marking of royal jubilees by planting trees is nothing new in Orkney and beyond. In Kirkwall, just down from Papdale Primary School, there is a lovely copse of trees which follows the gentle path of the Willow Burn. There is a plaque on the wall as you approach the town which tells the story of these two special events.
