The Queen's Commonwealth Day Message, 2011

While all Albertans — and all Canadians — value this history as a colourful account of the past, we also view it as a foundation for our present and future.

I have so many vivid memories and a tremendous sense of pride in being part of the Canadian family.

I retain a deep affection for this great country and for the people who take such pride in saying "I am Canadian".

My mother once said that this country felt like a "home away from home" for the Queen of Canada. Ladies and gentlemen, six decades later it still does...

Everyone is our neighbour, no matter what race, creed or colour.

Separation at this time is especially hard to bear.

Nigeria has much to be proud of.

Twice within the span of a single generation, Australia and Britain stood side by side in two of the bloodiest wars in human history.

Over the two World Wars and in the many conflicts since then, women in Britain and throughout the Commonwealth have faced and overcome all manner of challenges.

Wherever the future may take us, my admiration and affection for Canada and Canadians everywhere is - and will always remain - clear, strong and sure.

I am happy to be in Hamilton today in order to present new Colours and to visit my Canadian Argylls.

Je chéris ma place dans la vie du Canada et mon lien avec tous les Canadiens et Canadiennes.

I am proud to be the first member of the Canadian Royal Family to be greeted in Canada's newest territory.

It is my pleasure in this my Golden Jubilee Year to declare the 17th Commonwealth Games open.

I am glad to be in Merseyside, which must be one of the most distinctive and energetic parts of the United Kingdom.

It is our very diversity which makes the Commonwealth strong.

We have both been struck by both the diversity as well as the dynamism of Australia, and the vigour and humour of Australians everywhere.

Whatever may lie ahead, I declare again here tonight that my admiration, affection and regard for the people of Australia will remain, as it has been over these past fifty...

New Zealand is working to improve and strengthen all the various relationships between Maori and the Crown.

It is both a privilege and a pleasure to have served as Queen of New Zealand for these fifty years.

The Commonwealth remains one of the strongest pillars for the building of world-wide peace, growth and development.

For Christmas marks a moment to pause, to reflect and believe in the possibilities of rebirth and renewal.

By any measure this Millennium year has been an unforgettable one.

This December we are looking back not just on one year, but on a hundred years and a thousand years.

Though we each lead different lives, the experience of growing older, and the joys and emotions which it brings, are familiar to us all.

I remember my own childhood Christmases here, with my father and mother, and a great family gathering, and now I delight in seeing my children and grandchildren enjoying the...

But I cannot think of any Christmas of my reign when the message of the angels has been more apt.

To see British and Russian veterans standing together, in memory of the sacrifices of their comrades-in-arms, was a moving experience.

We have indeed become a global village.

I first came here for Christmas as a grandchild. Nowadays, my grandchildren come here for the same family festival.

I am constantly amazed by the generosity of donors and subscribers, great and small, who give so willingly and often towards the enjoyment of others.

I hope that all of us lucky enough to be able to enjoy such gatherings this Christmas will take time to count our blessings.

Unlike all the other planets in the solar system, earth shimmers green and blue in the sunlight and looks a very pleasant place to live.

May the Christmas story encourage you, for it is a message of hope every year, not for a few, but for all.

I hope we will all help each other to have a happy Christmas and, when the New Year comes, resolve to work for tolerance and understanding between all people.

There are many serious and threatening problems in this country and in the world but they will never be solved until there is peace in our homes and love in our hearts.

These success stories are often pushed into the background but they are the guarantee of our future.

But friendship, whether we are talking of continents or next door neighbours, should not need strife as its forerunner.

I hope that Christmas will remind us all that it is not how we communicate but what we communicate with each other that really matters.

Throughout history, seamen all over the world have shared a common experience and there is a special sense of brotherhood between merchant and naval seamen, fishermen...

All around us we see these acts of selflessness, people putting the life of someone else before their own.

I come across examples of unselfish service in all walks of life and in many unexpected places.