Jubilee?

[tracymort]

I am a tad confused. I thought that the Coronation was the 2nd of June 1953 (it is on my mum's certificate and coranation bible) so why is the 50th year being celebrated now? When it's your anniversary don't you celebrate the years completed rather than the year are about to start?

[geofbob]

You are forgetting that the Queen became Queen as soon as her father, King George VI, died on 6 February 1952, though as you say her coronation did not take place until 2 June 1953. So she has certainly completed 50 years "in the post", plus 4 months.

[tracymort]

I know that, so why didn't we celebrate the jubilee in february then?

[karstdejong]

Ah, now, there is the year 2000 you see, so that makes it the 50th year of her reign.

[geofbob]

Well, tracyh, the actual date of the Queen's Golden Jubilee, 6 February 2002, was marked by her issuing a special message to the nation. However, I don't know about you, but I don't think the rest of us would have been too impressed by being given extra time off, and having open air concerts, parades etc, in mid-winter - the weather was bad enough in June! In any case, the 6 February itself was not entirely a happy date for the Queen, since it is not only the anniversary of her accession, but also of her father's death.