Queen Elizabeth II and the Latter-day Saints: 7 interactions with the Saints

Queen Elizabeth II is beloved by many, including the Latter-day Saints. She began her reign when she was 25 years old, during the time David O. McKay was President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Her Majesty was a woman of faith who looked to Jesus Christ’s example. In her 2015 Christmas message, she said, “Despite being displaced and persecuted throughout his short life, Christ’s unchanging message was not one of revenge or violence but simply that we should love one another.”

Over the decade, Her Majesty had many interactions with members and leaders of the Church. Here are some of them.

The Queen and the Book of Mormon

The Osmonds used to dominate the world with their music. During the peak of their popularity, they traveled to London and met the Queen.

Jimmy Osmond told KSL that her mother gave Her Majesty a copy of the Book of Mormon and said, “I want to give you my most treasured possession.”

Years later, Jimmy performed for the Queen again with his brothers. He recalled that the Queen stopped him and said, “I remember your mother, and I still have… your Mormon Bible.”

Queen Elizabeth II also received another Book of Mormon on a separate occasion. It was in 1987 during the celebration of the Church’s 150th anniversary in the British Isles.

The Queen and the Prophet

President Ezra Taft Benson met with her Majesty at the British Embassy reception on Oct. 18, 1957.

A Stake President at the Queen’s Party

In 1976, the then President of the London England Mission was invited to a royal garden party at Buckingham Palace in 1976. He shared his experience in the Ensign magazine of the reverence surrounding the Queen’s party.

“For me, the most impressive moment of that event was the entrance of the Queen herself. The hubbub of the guests immediately subsided, and as she stood on the terrace, with the bands playing “God Save the Queen,” there was a reverence present that pervaded the entire assembly. I had heard the national anthem many times in my life, but this was the first time in the actual presence of the monarch. The occasion had a special poignancy. I was inspired, and I prayed for the welfare of my country and its leader.”

The Gold Medal

Christopher Vingoe of the Kings Lynn Ward, Norwich England Stake, overcame severe brain injuries in his childhood to achieve six grade A’s at A-level last year. That’s like doing well on the college entrance exams and placement tests in six different subjects. This incredible feat earned Christopher the Queen’s Gold Medal for Academic Achievement.

Queen Elizabeth II presented Christopher with the award. “She was lovely and very easy to chat to,” says Christopher, who served a mission in Leeds, England. He even told her a little about missionary service for the Church.

Christopher was hit by a car while crossing the street when he was six. He spent five days in a coma and had a blood clot on his brain. His recovery has amazed doctors. When Queen Elizabeth was told about Christopher’s accident and how he has recovered, she joked, “Perhaps it knocked some sense into him.”

BYU-Hawaii Graduate Meets the Queen

In 2016, Easter Takafa Niko, a graduate of BYU–Hawaii and a former missionary in the Oakland/San Francisco California Mission, was honored for his efforts to raise more than $300,000 from private donors to improve the quality of education in the small Pacific island of Tuvalu, where he was raised. Tuvalu is part of the British Commonwealth.

Niko told Deseret News, “It was a fabulous experience. The highlight was definitely meeting the Queen. I wasn’t expecting her to be so personable, but she took the time to ask about me, my project, and the people of Tuvalu. She was really sweet.”

The Royal Stamps

Since 1966, Great Britain’s Royal Mail has issued a unique set of Christmas stamps. The Queen herself approves the stamps before releasing them to the public.

Jorge Cocco Santángelo, an 85-year-old Latter-day Saint convert from Argentina, was selected as the featured artist for Great Britain’s 2021 Royal Mail Christmas stamp collection.

“It is a great honor to have been selected as the artist for Royal Mail’s Christmas 2021 stamp collection,” Cocco said. “However, this is not about me; it is rather about Christ. I feel humble that I could collaborate in spreading the ministry of Christ [and] … His birth. To me, it is a responsibility and satisfaction to be able to contribute to such an important message for humanity: Jesus the Christ was born, and He lives.”