The President of the Republic of Portugal rounded off his visit to London with a visit to the Queen last Thursday.
Rebelo de Sousa was ready with a gift to offer Her Majesty, a bottle of port dated 1953, the year of her coronation when she was 28-years-old.
A second present was a piece of Vista Alegre porcelain, a copy of a piece from the Compagnie des Indes collection.
The President informed the Queen that this was not the first time they had met.
His first glimpse was in 1957 at the Terreiro do Paço when young Rebelo was eight-years-old and Queen Elizabeth just 30 and on a state visit.
For the 1957 visit, see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRFYxbHHLeU
Another time was in 1985, when the monarch undertook a four-day visit to Portugal and Rebelo de Sousa was invited aboard the Royal yacht Britannia for a formal dinner, although not as the leader of the opposition, as he erroneously informed Her Majesty.
In return for his thoughtful selection of a vintage bottle of port, the President was given a silver famed photograph of the Queen’s grandson, Prince William. Perhaps not quite what he had been expecting but gracefully accepted nonetheless.
For the 2016 meeting, see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xii2EfUPz2I
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