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Queen welcomes US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden at Windsor

Queen welcomes US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden at Windsor

The Queen has welcomed President Joe Biden and the First Lady Jill Biden for a private cup of tea with her beloved dorgis at Windsor Castle.

The couple landed in the grounds of the monarch’s Berkshire residence on Marine One at just before 5pm, a few minutes ahead of schedule.

The Queen greeted the Bidens at the dais in the castle’s quadrangle where they shared laughs in front of a Guard of Honour as she talked him through the ceremony scaled back for Covid times.

The couple were treated to a version of the Star Spangled Banner from the guards before heading for tea which Queen Elizabeth reportedly served.

 (REUTERS)
(REUTERS)

It came after the Queen insisted on borrowing a ceremonial sword to cut a cake during a royal engagement on Friday when she attended a reception for G7 leaders at the Eden Projectprompting laughter from the Duchesses of Cornwall and Cambridge.

The ceremony in Windsor marked the end of Joe Biden’s visit to the UK after meeting the Prime Minister at the G7 Summit in Cornwall before heading to Brussels.

The Queen with US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden (PA Wire)
The Queen with US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden (PA Wire)

Their latest meeting comes the day after the Queen received her official birthday gift from the nation’s armed forces – a ceremony of pomp and pageantry in her honour – which was held at the castle.

The traditional Trooping the Colour ceremony, which is normally staged in London, was ruled out for the second successive year because of the threat of coronavirus.

The carefully-choreographed arrangements to welcome Mr Biden echo the welcome given to Donald Trump in 2018, when the controversial then-US president travelled to Windsor to meet the monarch.

Mr Trump and the Queen had afternoon tea together in the castle’s Oak Room, with the meeting lasting longer than expected.

It was due to last around half-an-hour, but overran by almost 20 minutes. The former President was forced to deny she kept the Queen waiting when she was seen checking her watch before his arrival.

In 2008, when then US president George W Bush met with the monarch at Windsor, he enjoyed a traditional English afternoon spread of tea, small sandwiches and cakes in the White Drawing Room.

In 2018, the Queen accompanied Mr Trump to inspect the Guard of Honour at Windsor.

Escorting a visiting head of state to inspect the troops is a role which usually fell to the late Duke of Edinburgh, before he retired in 2017.

There have been 14 US presidents during the Queen’s 69-year reign – from Harry S Truman to Mr Biden.

Mr Biden, who is in the UK for the G7 summit, will be the 13th American leader to meet the monarch, with Lyndon B Johnson the only one the Queen has not met.

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