The Blue Sapphire Jubilee: Queen will not celebrate 65th anniversary but instead sit in “quiet contemplation” remembering father’s death

The Queen
On Feb 6, the Queen will become the first British monarch to reach her Blue Sapphire Jubilee Credit: TOBY MELVILLE/Reuters

The Queen will notch up yet another remarkable milestone in her record-breaking reign next week - but for her, it will be a day of contemplation rather than celebration.

On Feb 6, the Queen will become the first British monarch to reach a Blue Sapphire Jubilee, 65 years to the day since she ascended the throne.

For Her Majesty, the more important anniversary is that of her father’s death at the age of just 56.

The Queen
The Queen waves to crowds in Windsor during her 90th birthday celebrations last April Credit: Andrew Matthews/PA

In 2015, she said her record as Britain’s longest-reigning monarch was “not one to which I have ever aspired”, and royal sources say she will spend the day in “quiet reflection” at Sandringham.

There are no plans for a public celebration of the latest jubilee - despite its uniqueness - and  the Queen will spend part of the day going through her red boxes of official documents.

Her father King George VI will be very much in her thoughts as she spends the rest of the day behind closed doors.

Five years ago, the Queen became only the second monarch in history, after Victoria, to celebrate a Diamond Jubilee and, in 2015, she surpassed her as our longest-reigning monarch.

Although she is the first British monarch to reach 65 years on the throne, the feat is not unique elsewhere.

Louis XIV of France, who reigned for 72 years, and King Bhumipol of Thailand, who died last year after a 70-year reign, are among those who reached Platinum Jubilees.

The Queen
The Queen at her coronation at Westminster Abbey in 1953 Credit: Getty Images/Hulton Archive

Dickie Arbiter, the Queen’s former press secretary, said: “It’s important to understand that for the Queen this marks the anniversary of the day her father died.

“She has always made it clear that her long reign is a consequence of her father’s early death and so it is not a day for celebration.

“She will go to church the day before and her father will be in her thoughts then. On the day itself, she will do her red boxes but she won’t be going out and about anywhere.”

Sandringham is filled with memories of George VI - it was in a bedroom there that he died in his sleep after suffering from lung cancer and, at the church of St Mary Magdalene, his coffin rested for two days before he was taken to London for his lying in state.

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Princess Elizabeth with the Queen Mother, Winston Churchill, King George VI and Princess Margaret at Buckingham Palace on VE Day 1945

Writing about her husband’s death, Queen Elizabeth later said in a letter to his mother Queen Mary: “I flew to his room and thought he was in a deep sleep, he looked so peaceful - and then I realised what had happened.”

She also wrote of her fears for the new Queen, then aged 25, saying: “I cannot bear to think of Lilibet, so young to bear such a burden.”

The Queen will not expect to receive any gifts to mark her latest jubilee, but she does already possess a suite of blue sapphire jewellery given to her, appropriately, by her father.

The Queen
The Queen and Prince Philip look through letters from well-wishers on their 25th wedding anniversary in 1972 Credit: Getty Images/Hulton Archive

When she married the Duke of Edinburgh in 1947, the Queen was given a necklace and earrings of blue sapphires surrounded by diamonds, known as the George VI Victorian Suite.

She loved it so much that, in 1963, she commissioned a tiara and bracelet to match, which Her Majesty most recently wore to the glittering diplomatic reception at Buckingham Palace in December.

In the days following the anniversary of her accession, the Queen will return to London at the end of her winter break in Norfolk.

Her next public engagement will be on Valentine’s Day, when she and the Duke of Edinburgh will open the new National Cyber Security Centre in Victoria, central London.

In November, the Queen and Prince Philip have another anniversary to look forward to, when they celebrate their platinum wedding anniversary after 70 years of marriage.

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