Behind the gates of Buckingham Palace, for the first and only time in UK history, at the Queen’s request, the Coldstream Guards were ordered to play The Star-Spangled Banner. More than 3,000 people attended the 45-minute ceremony at Buckingham Palace, including hundreds of Americans who were abroad during the attacks. For hundreds of years, the Bands of the Household Division played only a medley of traditional British nationalism songs. The only other time foreign national anthems are played is when foreign dignitaries come to Buckingham Palace for state visits. The Queen had also attended a service honoring the lives lost during the 9/11 attacks at St Paul’s Cathedral, where the Star Spangled Banner was once again played. Thousands of people line the gates of Buckingham Palace on September 13, 2001, observing a two-minute silence during the changing of the guard ceremony in honor of the victims of the September 11 attacks. Tim Graham Photo Library via GetQueen Elizabeth arrives at ground zero to lay a wreath of flowers in memory of the victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks, on July 6, 2010, in New York City.Getty Images Afterwards, the Queen was reportedly teary-eyed while singing. In 2010, on her first visit to New York since 1976, she visited the World Trade site and toured the monument as it was being completed. Queen Elizabeth II died on September 7, 2022, aged 96. She had been queen for 70 years at the time of her death.
