Princess Elizabeth writes just four days before her marriage
A typed letter dated November 16, 1947 from Princess Elizabeth to the first Prime Minister of Pakistan, Liaquat Ali Khan.
On Buckingham Palace-headed letter paper, a typed letter with handwritten, black ink salutation, valediction and bold, underlined signature “Elizabeth”.
Full typescript reads:
“The carved ivory casket which the Dominion of Pakistan have so kindly sent me as a Wedding present is an object of very great beauty for which I send my warmest thanks to all concerned. I shall treasure it for its own great value, and as long as I live it will always remind me of the kind thoughts which the Government and People of Pakistan wish to express on the occasion of my marriage.
“In addition you and Begum Liaquat Ali Khan have sent me a perfectly lovely Sari Dress of silver tissue with which I am delighted. I thank you both sincerely for the great pleasure you have given me.”
A single sheet, paper, mounted to a size: 12.2 x 13.4" (31 x 26cm).
On November 20, 1947, Princess Elizabeth married Philip Mountbatten in Westminster Abbey. More than 200 million people listened to BBC broadcasts of the service.
The couple were given more than 2,500 gifts, which were displayed to over 200,000 visitors before March 1948.
Six years later, the couple would be crowned Queen and king consort, and Elizabeth became head of state of seven countries, including Pakistan.
Liaquat Ali Khan (1895 - 1951) was the first prime minister of Pakistan, he was appointed (rather than elected) in 1947 by Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the first Governor General of the Dominion of Pakistan, the state founded by the UK’s Indian Independence Act of 1947.
He was assassinated in 1951.
This important letter, written at a time when the British Empire was reforming, captures a historic moment between two important national and global figures.
The letter is sourced from the family of M. Liaquat Ali Khan, and his wife, Begum Raana Liaquat Ali Khan.
It is a striking and attractive display document with considerable historic and archival weight.
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