THROUGHOUT her 70-year reign Queen Elizabeth II was warmly welcomed to Solihull.
Whether she was opening shopping centres, green spaces or visiting schools, the crowds flocked to see her.
In 1962, just a decade after she became queen, the late Queen paid a visit to Solihull School to mark its 400th anniversary.
During the visit Her Majesty inspected a guard of honour provided by the Combined Cadet Force and planted a mulberry tree outside the Chapel of St Katherine and St Mary.
Solihull School said: “To commemorate the coronation of Elizabeth II in 1953, we planted a line of cherry trees and thereafter our main entrance on our Warwick Road campus was known as Coronation Drive; and after the Queen’s visit in 1962 we named the forecourt in front of the Chapel Queen’s Court. A wonderful, memorable occasion.”
The school’s link to the Queen were still strong as the Infant 2 Prep School pupils received a letter and card from the Queen’s Lady-in-Waiting in response to the colourful cards the children sent to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June.
In 1971 the Queen visited Chelmsley Wood and opened the shopping centre there.
While she was in the borough she paid a visit to the site which would become home to the National Exhibition Centre (NEC).
Around five years later she was welcomed back to open the NEC
The late Queen also came to Solihull to open Touchwood Shopping Centre in 2002.
One again the crowds flocked to see her.
