Mystery of Clinton’s birthday message to queen solved
Last Friday, June 4, I was confused by a birthday message Secretary Clinton made to Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II that said, “I am pleased to wish Queen Elizabeth II a happy birthday.” The queen was born on April 21, 1926, according to the British monarchy’s website. Had someone at the State Department made a blooper? ...
Last Friday, June 4, I was confused by a birthday message Secretary Clinton made to Britain's Queen Elizabeth II that said, "I am pleased to wish Queen Elizabeth II a happy birthday."
Last Friday, June 4, I was confused by a birthday message Secretary Clinton made to Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II that said, “I am pleased to wish Queen Elizabeth II a happy birthday.”
The queen was born on April 21, 1926, according to the British monarchy’s website. Had someone at the State Department made a blooper?
Turns out the answer is yes, though the blooper wasn’t as bad as I thought. The queen actually has two birthdays! The second one, recognized as her official birthday, is celebrated with a ceremony by British troops on a Saturday in June, and this year it’ll be celebrated on June 12. So, Clinton erred in sending her message a week early, but an early message is at least better than a belated birthday message.
An Associated Press article states, “The tradition of celebrating two birthdays began under King Edward VII, who was born in November but wanted his birthday parade to take place in summer weather.”
(In the photo above, Clinton meets Queen Elizabeth II at a reception at Buckingham Palace on April 1, 2009.)
Preeti Aroon was copy chief at Foreign Policy from 2009-2016 and was an assistant editor from 2007-2009. Twitter: @pjaroonFP
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