Platinum Jubilee: The Queen's visits to Cambridgeshire in pictures

Between London and Her Majesty's private country estate at Sandringham, Norfolk, the county has hosted Queen Elizabeth II and her family several dozen times.

The Queen's late husband, Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh, served as the Chancellor to the University of Cambridge for some 35 years between 1976 and 2011.

And since her ascension to the throne in 1952, Queen Elizabeth II has visited the county - Cambridge, Ely, Duxford and the Newmarket races on the Suffolk border - on a regular basis.

To mark her Platinum Jubilee in 2022, Lord-Lieutenant of Cambridgeshire Julie Spence said it has been a "privilege" to witness The Queen's commitment to Cambridgeshire throughout her lifetime.

Mrs Spence said: "Cambridgeshire, along with the rest of the country, applauds Her Majesty's selfless commitment to the nation over the last 70 years - through good times and bad.

"As the longest reigning monarch of modern times, she is the only sovereign most of the people of this county have ever known.

"Our respect and admiration has grown since she made her first official visit as monarch to the City of Cambridge in October 1955.

"Her Majesty is the patron of more than 600 charities and organisations from The Women’s Institute to The Combined Cadet Force, Girl guides and The Royal British Legion, many with local links, this has also included a number of Cambridge University colleges such as Queen’s College, Gonville and Caius, Trinity and Pembroke.

"Less well known – but no less important - was her patronage of the Peterborough Royal Foxhound Show Society. All those organisations who have benefitted from their association will be applauding Her Majesty on this remarkable milestone along with the rest of us.

"Her most recent visit to our area was in 2019 to visit the National Institute of Agricultural Botany to see their leading work in crop research, and to formally open the new Royal Papworth Hospital in 2019, granting it the Royal honorific.

"I was privileged to be able to welcome her on that day on behalf of the county.

"On the anniversary of her wonderful achievement of 70 years on the throne, I have sent her our congratulations, thanks and very best wishes."

On October 20, 1955, Her Majesty visited the city to open the University of Cambridge's new Veterinary School, which now sits on Madingley Road in the city.

The Queen, aged 96, has had a lifelong love of animals.

She was a familiar face at the Newmarket races, and pictures from 1955 show her horses' strong performance in the 1,000 Guineas day.

In 1955, her filly Maple Leaf ran second to Ribambelle in the Littleport Stakes.

Her colt Pall Mall won the 2,000 Guineas in 1958, and among more successes, she won the 1,000 Guineas in 1974 with her filly Highclere.

She became patron of the former Newmarket Animal Health trust in 1959.

In 1962, Queen Elizabeth returned to Cambridge to open the Addenbrooke's Hospital site on Hills Road.

The hospital remains on the site, and has since become the centre of the Cambridge Biomedical Campus - which today houses the research and development arm of Covid-19 vaccine manufacturer AstraZeneca and cancer researcher IOTA Pharmaceuticals.

Ely Cathedral hit its 13th centenary in 1973, and Queen Elizabeth II visited the city in November to join the celebrations.

She watched 600 schoolchildren re-enact the Ely street festival which took place earlier the same year, and gave her blessing for Ely to remain a city during the local government reorganisation in the early-1970s.

She returned to Ely in 1987 for the Royal Maundy.

On Maundy Thursday - the day before Good Friday - the monarch ceremonially distributes coins as alms to elderly residents.

Crowds lined the city streets to see The Queen before the Eastertime celebration.

She visited Ely Cathedral again in 2009.

On behalf of the Diocese of Ely, the Rt Rev Dr Dagmar Winter, Bishop of Huntingdon, congratulated The Queen on her Platinum Jubilee.

She said: "Her Majesty the Queen is now the first British Monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee in the 70th anniversary of her accession.

"This is a historic achievement and testament to Her Majesty’s tireless dedication throughout her many years of service, inspired by her faith in Jesus Christ and her sense of vocation.

"We are delighted that church communities throughout the Diocese of Ely will be celebrating this landmark anniversary be it in prayer, Jubilee lunches and garden parties or in the planting of trees as part of The Queen’s Green Canopy."

The American Air Museum in Cambridgeshire hosted Queen Elizabeth II in 1997 - when the collection at Duxford opened.

On her visit to the AAM, which is in the Imperial War Museum Duxford campus, Her Majesty sat with Dr Sheila Widnall, then-Secretary of the US Air Force and the first woman to head a branch of the US military.

In 2011, The Queen opened the Sainsbury Laboratory at the Cambridge University Botanic Garden.

The building won the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Stirling Prize in 2012, and scientists at the laboratory research the growth and development of plants.

In the same year, The Queen's husband was taken into Papworth Hospital, which was near Royston at the time, for a heart procedure on Christmas Eve.

The hospital relocated in 2019 to the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, near Addenbrooke's Hospital.

Queen Elizabeth II and the Lord-Lieutenant Julie Spence attended a ceremony to mark the new unit open, when it was renamed the Royal Papworth Hospital.

Cambridgeshire continues to receive visits by members of the royal family - most recently by Princess Anne, who unveiled a 13m-long table at Ely Cathedral for The Queen's Platinum Jubilee on Tuesday, May 17.

The Princess Royal also visited Peterborough and Wisbech.

Councillor Susan Wallwork, Mayor of Wisbech, described The Queen's Platinum Jubilee as a "monumental" occasion.

The Mayor said: "It's a monumental time for Her Majesty, and it's a time to come together to celebrate the achievements of everyone - not just The Queen - who has made a difference over the last 70 years.

"I love the idea of a street party. This is a great cause for celebration."

As Her Majesty celebrates her record-breaking reign we have delved into our archives to create a tribute to her life and 70 years of service. Filled with photos and history, Our Queen's Platinum Reign is a magazine we hope readers will treasure for years to come. This special souvenir is available for £9.99 online and in-store.

Order online by clicking this link www.gblshop.co.uk/jubilee.

Find shops stocking the magazine near you by heading over to seymour.co.uk/storefinder/. Select 'Our Queens Platinum Reign' from the drop-down menu along with your postcode and radius.