2022 is a very special royal year in the United Kingdom, as the country celebrates Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee. To mark the 70th anniversary of The Queen’s accession to the throne, three special displays will be staged at the official royal residences.

The displays will showcase significant occasions in Her Majesty’s reign – the Accession, the Coronation and the Jubilees – and in addition there will be two new exhibitions presenting some of the finest works in the Royal Collection. Japan: Courts and Culture will take place at The Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace from 8 April 2022 to 12 March 2023 and Masterpieces from Buckingham Palace will take place at The Queen’s Gallery, Palace of Holyroodhouse from 25 March to 25 September 2022. The Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace, where historic carriages still used for royal occasions are on display, will open to the public from 19 May to 2 October 2022 – the first time they have been open since the autumn of 2020.

Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2021

At the Summer Opening of the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace, portraits of The Queen taken by Dorothy Wilding, such as the one above, will be on display, alongside items of Her Majesty’s personal jewellery worn for the portrait sittings. 

Queen Elizabeth II ascended to the throne on 6 February 1952. Twenty days later, the first official photographic sitting with the new Queen was granted to the photographer Dorothy Wilding. In 1937 Wilding had become the first official female royal photographer when she was appointed to take the portraits at the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.  

The series of photographs taken of The Queen in 1952 are remarkable for their modern, emblematic approach and formed the basis of The Queen's image on postage stamps from 1953 until 1971, as well as providing the official portrait of Her Majesty which was sent to every British embassy throughout the world.  

Coronation Dress and Robe of Estate (Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2021)

At Windsor Castle, the Coronation Dress and Robe of Estate worn by The Queen for her Coronation at Westminster Abbey on 2 June 1953 will be on display. Designed by the British couturier Sir Norman Hartnell, the dress was created in the finest white duchesse satin, richly embroidered in a lattice-work effect with an iconographic scheme of national and Commonwealth floral emblems in gold and silver thread and pastel-coloured silks, encrusted with seed pearls, sequins and crystals.  

Her Majesty’s Robe of Estate was made by the royal robe-makers Ede and Ravenscroft of purple silk velvet woven by the firm of Warner & Sons, and was embroidered at the Royal School of Needlework. The goldwork embroidery design features wheat ears and olive branches, symbolising prosperity and peace, surrounding the crowned intertwined EIIR cipher. It took 12 embroideresses, using 18 different types of gold thread, more than 3,500 hours to complete the work between March and May 1953.  

At the Palace of Holyroodhouse, visitors will see a display of outfits worn by Her Majesty on occasions to celebrate the Silver, Golden and Diamond Jubilees. In 1977 for The Queen’s Silver Jubilee, the royal couturier Sir Hardy Amies designed a striking ensemble of dress, coat and stole in pink silk crepe and chiffon with a matching hat designed by Simone Mirman with flowerheads hanging from silk stems (pictured below). The ensemble was worn at the Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul’s Cathedral on 7 June 1977 marking the 25th anniversary of The Queen’s Accession.

Silver Jubilee outfit by Sir Hardy Amies (Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2021)

Platinum Jubilee: The Queen’s Accession will be at the Summer Opening of the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace from Friday 22 July to Sunday 2 October 2022. Platinum Jubilee: The Queen’s Coronation will be at Windsor Castle from Thursday 7 July to Monday 26 September 2022 and The Platinum Jubilee display at the Palace of Holyroodhouse will be from July to September 2022.

If you or your group would like to enjoy a tailor-made tour of the United Kingdom in 2022, taking in the royal displays and exhibitions celebrating Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee, please do contact our friendly team today. And perhaps you would like to time your visit to coincide with some of the other events and activities around the country taking place to mark this extraordinary royal milestone – 2022 is sure to be a very special year to visit the UK!

You can also follow in the footsteps of Queen Elizabeth II on our Royal Britain tour, or why not explore England’s history with a tour of its Royal Palaces and Castles?