Dignitaries gathered yesterday to plant a tree in celebration of the Queen’s platinum jubilee.

Charles Gosling, the Mayor of Hamilton, gave a speech before planting the Jacaranda Mimosifolia with the help of Rena Lalgie, the Governor, and US Consul-General Karen Grissette as well as Corporation of Hamilton councillors, members of the Royal Bermuda Regiment and the parks department.

The One Bermuda Alliance issued a statement congratulating the Queen on her “remarkable milestone”.

Mr Gosling said: “It is my honour to be at Queen Elizabeth Park today for this ceremonial tree planting to mark Her Majesty the Queen’s platinum jubilee.

“The Queen has ruled for longer than any monarch in British history and has seen the evolving of an empire into a more collegial group of nations drawing more by consensus than by dictates.

“Her extraordinary reign has seen her travel more widely than any other monarch undertaking many historic overseas visits. In fact, Bermuda was the Queen’s very first stop on her inaugural Commonwealth tour in 1953 — you could say that all of this started here in Bermuda.“

Mr Gosling highlighted that the Queen visited Bermuda five more times, the last being in 2009 to celebrate Bermuda’s 400th anniversary.

He said Bermuda and the Corporation of Hamilton have a rich history in honouring royal jubilees.

“In 1887, Queen Victoria celebrated her golden jubilee, and plans were made locally by a joint committee of legislature and council to decide a fitting permanent memorial. This led to the erection of the clock tower on Sessions House.

“Queen Victoria’s golden jubilee was the driver for the corporation to establish a designated landscape and formal park with an ornate bandstand as its central feature.

“In 1889, the Victoria Park bandstand was erected in commemoration of the jubilee. Today it is the only remaining example of this type of bandstand in the world.

“Jubilee Park was officially opened to the public in 2002 to honour the golden jubilee of Elizabeth II.

“My hope is that this Jacaranda Mimosifolia we are planting here today will serve as a lasting tribute to Her Majesty the Queen and memorialise her legacy for years to come.”

The US Consulate General also posted a tweet on the occasion of the Queen’s platinum jubilee.

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Cole Simons, the Leader of the Opposition, later issued a congratulatory statement on behalf of the One Bermuda Alliance.

Mr Simons said: “It gives me great pleasure to extend our warmest congratulations to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on the Queen’s platinum jubilee. She is the first British monarch to celebrate 70 years on the throne.

“To reach such a remarkable milestone is indeed a testament to her grit, her grace, her dignity and her personal lifelong commitment to public service.

“Throughout the past seven decades the world has witnessed her iconic calm, strength and her ability to adapt to the changes in society, even in the most difficult times. By maintaining the principles of freedom, justice and democracy, Her Majesty has rightly earned the respect of thousands of people from all walks of life.

“We applaud her dedication in supporting the Commonwealth, the British Overseas Territories and respecting their individual sovereignty. A recent demonstration of her commitment includes the UK’s valued contributions to Bermuda’s fight against Covid-19 by supplying free vaccines — allowing our island to positively manoeuvrer our way to a more positive outcome — for which we are thankful.”

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