KINGSTON, Jamaica — Queen Elizabeth II started her long and enduring reign on February 6, 1952 at the age of 25. She died Thursday aged 96.

During her 70-year reign, the Queen visited Jamaica, a former British colony and for which she was still Head-of-State at the time of her death, on six occasions. Those visits came in 1953, 1966, 1975, 1983, 1994 and 2002.

The Queen’s first visit to the island came less than two years after she ascended the throne. She arrived in Jamaica in November 1953 when she was reportedly met by a crowd numbering around 250,000. Jamaica’s population at the time was 1.5 million people.

The Queen and her husband Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh reportedly drove across the country in the sun, to meet Jamaicans from all parts of the island.

When Jamaica gained independence from Britain in 1962, the Queen was represented at the independence celebrations by her sister Princess Margaret.

In March, 1966 the Queen arrived in Jamaica for her second visit, this one a four-day trip with her husband.

Among other things, they attended a civic reception in Charles Square, Montego Bay, and visited Doctor’s Cave Beach and Lucea Square in the western end of the island. During this visit, the Queen adopted a personal Jamaican flag, in her role as Jamaica’s Queen, to fly on all occasions when she was on the island. The flag was used on four subsequent visits.

Also in 1966, the Duke of Edinburgh and his elder children, Prince Charles and Princess Anne toured Jamaica as part of his visit to open the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Kingston.

Nine years later in April, 1975, Queen Elizabeth and the Duke would descend on Jamaica’s shores for the third time. Their visit coincided with the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Kingston.

February 1983 saw The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh making their fourth trip to the island. During that visit, the Queen opened the Jamaican Parliament in the 21st anniversary year of independence.

Among the locations she visited was the then College of Arts, Science and Technology, now University of Technology, in Papine.

From March 1-3, 1994, the Queen and Duke were in Jamaica for a fifth time. On that occasion their visit came during a tour of the Caribbean.

The royal couple was met by hundreds of adoring school children everywhere they went. Many people, mostly women, including curious onlookers, office and factory workers, also turned out to meet them. While on the island the Queen laid a wreath at the Cenotaph in National Heroes Park in Kingston.

At Sam Sharpe Square in Montego Bay, she met representatives of voluntary organisations, ex-servicemen’s organisations, and the media. A dinner banquet was held in the Queen’s honour at King’s House. The Queen also visited the Laws Street Trade Training Centre in downtown Kingston and the Holy Family Primary School as well as a T-shirt factory in Montego Bay and the University of the West Indies. She also addressed the Jamaican Parliament in a speech in which she described the country as a “stable and democratic society (with) racial and religious tolerance, and (a) bontiful and beautiful land”. A special 500-dollar gold coin was struck to mark the royal visit, and it was presented to the Queen by the Government and people of Jamaica.

The final visit by the Queen was in February 2002 which she again made with the Duke of Edinburgh.

Of significance is the fact that the trip marked the first official engagements related to her Golden Jubilee. Her tour of the island also coincided with Jamaica’s 40th anniversary of independence.

The Queen and Duke arrived in Jamaica on February 18 and first stopped in Montego Bay before travelling to Kingston.

The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh were “enthusiastically welcomed” by Jamaicans and 57 per cent of those polled said the visit was important to the country and large crowds turned out to see her.

She received an official welcome at King’s House, met with Jamaican veterans of the First World War, addressed the Jamaican Parliament and visited the depressed community of Trench Town in west Kingston where she viewed urban poverty projects while there.

Her final tour ended on what has been described as a “unique note” when, at the final banquet in Jamaica, a power outage plunged King’s House into darkness during the meal. The Queen described the event as “memorable”.

She has had a memorable life indeed.