The Queen's recent visits to Portsmouth - to HMS Queen Elizabeth and for the D-Day commemorations

The most recent occasion was on May 22 last year when she visited HMS Queen Elizabeth before the carrier’s maiden deployment to the Far East.

During a visit that was kept under wraps until the last moment, the monarch flew in on her helicopter – the purple livery of which some eagle-eyed visitors to Portsmouth Historic Dockyard recognised as belonging to the royal. She was given a tour of the ship and met its personnel, who deployed that evening. Another clue was that the Royal Standard was raised on board the warship.

The previous time The Queen came to the city was for the D-Day commemorations in 2019 – when the eyes of the world were on Portsmouth.

Her Majesty had already received then US President Donald Trump at Buckingham Palace, before joining him and other world leaders such as Angela Merkel, Emmanuel Macron and then Prime Minister Theresa May on Southsea Common for country’s main event to mark the 75th anniversary of the Normandy landings.

Dressed in bright pink, the Queen told the gathered guests and world leaders she was ‘delighted to be with you in Portsmouth today’ – prompting a cheer from the crowd outside watching on screens.

She said (and her gracious and dignified words are worth reprinting in full): ‘When I attended the commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the D-Day landings some thought it might be the last such event.

‘But the wartime generation, my generation, is resilient and I’m delighted to be with you in Portsmouth today.

‘Seventy-five years ago hundreds of thousands of young soldiers, sailors and airmen left these shores in the cause of freedom.

‘In a broadcast to the nation at that time, my Father, King George VI, said: “What is demanded from us all is something more than courage and endurance; we need a revival of spirit, a new unconquerable resolve’.

‘That’s exactly what those brave men brought to the battle as the future of the war depended on their success.

‘Many of them would never return, and the heroism, courage and sacrifice of those who lost their lives will never be forgotten.

‘It’s with humility and pleasure on behalf of the entire country, indeed the whole free world, that I say to you all: thank you.’

The previous time The Queen visited was for the commissioning of the aircraft carrier in 2017. Resplendent in purple, she took her place alongside her daughter Princess Anne, then Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson and First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Philip Jones in a hangar in the naval base.

In her speech, the The Queen said her namesake was ‘the most powerful and capable ship ever to raise the White Ensign’.

‘At the forefront of these responsibilities will be the men and women of the Royal Navy, the Royal Marines, supported by the Army, Royal Air Force and by coalition partners.

‘As the daughter, wife and mother of naval officers, I recognise the unique demands our nation asks of you and I will always value my special link to HMS Queen Elizabeth, her ship's company and their families,’ she said.