Q: Jennifer - Surrey
I have heard people refer to 'The Queen's Beasts'. What are they?
For The Queen's coronation in 1953, a special series of ten royal heraldic beasts was devised and created to illustrate Her Majesty's ancestry.
Heraldic beasts have been depicted since medieval times as supporters in coats of arms, and carved stone figures of such creatures were widely used to embellish castles, palaces and public buildings, particularly in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.
The idea of a new series of beasts for the new Queen was that of Sir George Bellew, then Garter King of Arms. The beasts - each six feet tall - were sculpted by the Royal Academician James Woodford and were positioned outside the entrance to the annexe of Westminster Abbey and in front of the annexes Great Window, thus indicating that they were mounting guard over the place of The Queen's crowning.
Later a new set was carved in Portland stone and these can be seen in the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
The ten beasts, and the shields they hold, portray The Queen's Royal descent, family and ancestry.
They are: the lion of England supporting the Royal arms of the United Kingdom; the griffin of Edward III holding the badge of the Royal House of Windsor; the falcon of the Plantagenets bearing the golden fetterlock badge of the House of York; the black bull of Clarence supporting the Royal arms used from 1405 to 1603; the white lion of Mortimer holding a badge with the white rose of York; the Beaufort yale (a heraldic antelope), representing the House of Lancaster, bearing a crowned portcullis badge; the greyhound of Richmond supporting a Tudor rose badge; the red dragon of Wales supporting the arms of the Princes of North Wales; the unicorn of Scotland holding a shield of the old Royal arms of Scotland; and the white horse of Hanover supporting the Royal arms used from 1714
Q: V. Suresh Kumar - Malaysia
Has The Queen visited Saudi Arabia and has the late King Fahd visited the UK?
Though The Queen never visited King Fahd in Saudi Arabia, the King undertook a State Visit to the UK from 24-27 March 1987.
During his visit King Fahd visited Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother at Clarence House and had lunch at 10 Downing Street with Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. He also attended the State Banquet held in his honour at Buckingham Palace and held a banquet in The Queen's honour at Claridges hotel.
The Queen visited Saudi Arabia in 1979 on an official tour of the Middle East, when she also visited Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman.
Q: Ann - USA
What is Her Majesty's role and what are her responsibilities as the Head of The Church of England?
The Preface to the 39 Articles of the Church of England describes the monarch as 'being by God's Ordinance, according to Our just Title, Defender of the Faith and ... Supreme Governor of the Church of England'.
The monarch must be in communion with the Church of England (i.e. a full, confirmed member) and, in his or her coronation oath, the monarch promises to maintain the Church.
Archbishops and bishops are appointed by The Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister, who considers the names selected by a Church Commission.
They take an oath of allegiance to The Queen on appointment and may not resign without royal authority. Parish priests also take an oath of allegiance to The Queen.
As Governor of the Church of England, The Queen ceremonially opens the General Synod after the elections in the dioceses every five years. The Queen most recently opened the General Synod on 14 November 2000 at a service at Westminster Abbey. During the ceremony, The Queen makes a speech to the Synod.
Although The Queen is the titular head of the Church of England, she is not responsible for the Church's administration nor for liturgical matters.
The General Synod (including the bishops, elected representatives from the clergy and the laity) is the supreme authority of the Church of England. Since 1919, the Synod (formerly called the Church Assembly) has had the power (delegated by Parliament) to pass Measures on any matter concerning the Church of England.
Q: Wehrmann - Berlin
Which titles does The Queen have?
The Queen has many titles, which vary according to which country or area of the United Kingdom she is in and in which capacity.
In the Commonwealth, her title varies slightly according to the country concerned. For example, in Canada, she is known as 'Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom, Canada and Her other realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith'.
The Queen is also Duke of Normandy, Duke of Lancaster and Lord of Man.
In the Armed Forces, Her Majesty is Lord High Admiral of the United Kingdom, Colonel-in-Chief or Captain General of many regiments in the Army both in the United Kingdom and in the Commonwealth, and also Air Commodore-in-Chief, Commandant-in-Chief and Royal Honorary Air Commodore of various organisations in the Royal Air Force.
Q: Mark Jones - Solihull
Do members of the Royal Family have to pass driving tests?
The Queen learned to drive at the age of 19 at a training centre near Aldershot while serving as a member of the Auxiliary Territorial Service.
As part of the royal prerogative The Queen is not implicated in the Road Traffic Act or Motor Vehicle Driving Licence Regulations, and therefore does not require a driving licence; other members of the Royal Family are obliged to pass the test and hold valid licences.
The Prince of Wales and The Princess Royal learned to drive on the family's private estates, accompanied by The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh and chauffeurs from the Royal Mews. They also took extra lessons at the Metropolitan Police Motor Driving School before sitting their tests.
The Prince of Wales passed his test on 11 April 1967, and Princess Anne a year later; both passed in a Rover 2000. In 1974 the Princess also passed the heavy goods vehicles test so that she could drive her horse boxes. Prince Andrew passed his test on 21 December 1977 at Isleworth and Prince Edward on 27 July 1981 at Wanstead.
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