The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library is paying tribute to the legacy of Queen Elizabeth II.
Queen Elizabeth visited President Reagan at his ranch in Santa Barbara County back in 1983.
“When we talk about the president’s relationship with Mikhail Gorbachev, or with Margaret Thatcher, we talk about the diplomacy but for President Reagan and the queen-- it was a relationship, it was a friendship,” said Melissa Giller, chief marketing officer at the Ronald Regan Foundation and Institute.
A close friendship between a queen and an American president is back in the spotlight as the Ronald Reagan presidential library pays tribute to Britain’s longest-serving monarch.
“We have put a condolence book up in our lobby, so visitors are welcome to come up and sign it. We will be sending it to the royal family at the end of the month,” said Giller.
Queen Elizabeth visited the central coast back in 1983. The trip to Santa Barbara was marked by excitement, torrential rain, and rough seas.
“They were gonna come out via yacht and visit the President and Mrs. Reagan at his ranch in the Santa Ynez mountains. In 1983 there was a torrential downpour, and she couldn’t actually come via water and so she came via plane and drove the seven miles up the very windy road to Ronald Reagan’s ranch,” explained Giller.
The weather even interrupted plans to go horseback riding, but that didn’t stop the Queen and the President from enjoying each other’s company.
“The queen-- when she finally did arrive at the ranch--she looked at the president and said ‘this is such a fun adventure.’ They had a really fun relationship,” added Giller.
Tributes, meanwhile, continue to pour in from around the world in remembrance of Queen Elizabeth II.
“She was a great lady, she’s been through everything you could think from the second world war to the present day,” said Bakersfield resident Victor Pierce. “It’s kind of different hearing king, that there’s a king now.”
Flags are being flown at half-staff at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley.
