Jahnava Nitai Das Posted August 3, 2002 Report Share Posted August 3, 2002 LONDON (AP) - During her Golden Jubilee tour Thursday, Queen Elizabeth II ( news - web sites) became the first reigning British monarch to visit a Sikh temple in this country. The stop was part of the queen's efforts to use celebrations marking her 50 years on the throne to celebrate the country's religious diversity. On Wednesday, she became the first sitting monarch to visit a mosque in Britain. Earlier, she visited a Hindu temple, and soon she will stop at one of the country's synagogues. At the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdhwara temple in Leicester, the queen was hailed by the people there as the "queen of all faiths." She slipped off her black leather shoes and put on skin-colored slippers before meeting Sikh leaders in the colorful prayer hall. Later, in the temple's museum, she was given a gold ceremonial sword symbolizing "self defense and defense of the innocent." "On you, we place our affection, respect, love and loyalty," said Leicester Council of Faiths chairman Resham Singh Sandhu, who is a Sikh. Earlier in the day, large crowds greeted the queen and her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, as they arrived in Leicester on the Royal Train and walked around the city center. While the queen was at the Sikh temple, the duke opened a visitor center at Leicester Cathedral. The royal couple then joined one another at Leicester's National Space Center, where the queen met Britain's first female astronaut, Helen Sharman. Queen Elizabeth II also shook hands and chatted with Conservative legislator Alan Duncan, who this week became the first member of his political party to publicly announce that he is gay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jahnava Nitai Das Posted August 3, 2002 Author Report Share Posted August 3, 2002 [Photo is attached in the header, click to view.] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 8, 2004 Report Share Posted October 8, 2004 I think queen Elizebeth (the first) was one from what seemed like a very nice and loving family. Now I am an American boy of 13 years old but even I my self know that "It is always a joy to meet a Britannian, my good people, for I am one of those who believe that all of the people should be treated like everyone eles because we are all one and we don't have a lot of alternative worlds so we can't exacly go and start our own world of our own religon, race, or creed." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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