Queen in Pakistan, 1997

Happy 70th Pakistan Independence Day! Every year on August 14th (15th for India), Pakistan celebrates Independence from Britain. Though the Queen hasn’t been Queen of Pakistan since 1956, we are covering some of the royal visits to Pakistan today, including the Queen’s State Visit to Pakistan in 1997 below-

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The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh started their State Visit in Islamabad, where they were welcomed by then President Farooq Leghari, and afterwards visited the Faisal Masjid. In the evening, the President hosted a Banquet for the Queen (wearing the Modern Sapphire Tiara and the George VI Sapphire Parure) at the Aiwan-e-Sadr. The Queen gave a speech in which she lauded Princess Diana’s humanitarian work in Pakistan and expressed thanks to Pakistanis for sharing Britain’s grief of the recent tragic death of the princess.

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On Day 2, the Queen gave a speech to the Pakistani Parliament and met a group of political leaders, including Benazir Bhutto (the first female PM of a muslim Majority nation). The Queen and Duke attended a cricket match in Rawalpindi Stadium before a dinner at the Lahore Fort.

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One of the final events was a visit to a church in Lahore, where she was greeted by school girls throwing rose petals.

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