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Queen celebrates 90th birthday today

00:01, 21 April 2016

The Queen is marking a major landmark today as she celebrates her 90th birthday.

Elizabeth II - who has been on the throne longer than any other monarch - will spend her actual birthday at Windsor Castle.

She will start by unveiling a 6.3km self-guided walking trail connecting 63 points of significance in the town.

The Queen Visits Brompton Barracks Gillingham to meet the Corps of the Royal Engineers in 2007
The Queen Visits Brompton Barracks Gillingham to meet the Corps of the Royal Engineers in 2007

In the evening, Her Majesty will light the first of a network of beacons throughout the country, including Kent, to mark the occasion.

Celebrations will continue from today until around the time of her official birthday, which this year is June 11.

Interactive map:Kent folk on 90 glorious years of the Queen

The Queen has made a number of visits to Kent over her long reign, and last year attended a service in Canterbury Cathedral before opening The Wing Battle of Britain memorial at Capel-le Ferne.


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A recent trip to the county was in 2013, when she bade farewell to the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, attending the 5 Scots final parade at Howe Barracks in Canterbury.

She also visited the Invicta Barracks in Maidstone in 2011, where she met Gurkha engineers.


Download a souvenir poster of Her Majesty the Queen's 90th birthday here

The Queen's 90th birthday poster

In 2005 it was Dover's turn to get a special visit - when her majesty opened port berths.

In 2011 the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh gave the royal seal of approval to Margate's Turner Contemporary, where they were given a guided tour of the gallery.

With its long military history, Medway has had its fair share of Royal visits over the decades.

During a visit to Rochester the Queen made a brief visit to the cathedral. She is pictured with the Bishop, Dr C.M. Chavasse
During a visit to Rochester the Queen made a brief visit to the cathedral. She is pictured with the Bishop, Dr C.M. Chavasse

Her majesty's first visit was back in 1968 when she inspected the Royal Engineers at Brompton Barracks in her capacity as Colonel-in-Chief of the Corps.

She repeated the journey in 2007, the first time she visited the barracks since 1987 when she opened the Royal Engineers Museum.

The Queen chats with Sqn Ldr Pickering during the opening of The Wing at Capel-le-Ferne last year. Picture: Martin Apps
The Queen chats with Sqn Ldr Pickering during the opening of The Wing at Capel-le-Ferne last year. Picture: Martin Apps

A visit in 1984 included a trip to Rochester High Street, the Wisdom Hospice and Chatham Dockyard and Gillingham Business Park.

She had also previously been in Rochester to visit the Cathedral and hand out Maundy Money.

Her Majesty made quite an impact on Elyssa Gray, from Chatham, who was just five when she travelled to all the way to Slough to see the Queen on a public engagement in 2013 and present her with flowers.

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