Queen Elizabeth marks 50th year on British throne

KING'S LYNN, England -- Personal sorrow mingled with royal history as Queen Elizabeth II reached a bittersweet milestone Wednesday, somberly marking 50 years as monarch on the anniversary of her father's death.

Golden Jubilee celebrations are planned later this year, but for the queen, Feb. 6 is typically a day of quiet reflection. This year, she broke her tradition of commemorating Accession Day privately to visit cancer patients at a hospital in King's Lynn, near the royal estate at Sandringham, in Norfolk, 100 miles north of London.

Her father, King George VI, succumbed to complications from lung cancer in 1952, making Princess Elizabeth queen at 25.

Proud of past

Her black Rolls Royce -- with the royal standard banner waving on top -- swept up to the Macmillan cancer center at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital to waves and applause from about 50 well-wishers. Wearing a green coat and matching hat over her gold-colored dress, the sovereign chatted with patients, guests and hospital staff for about 45 minutes. Nurses and orderlies crowded around windows to catch a glimpse.

The queen made no public comments, but in a written message to the nation, she told all Britons they should be proud of the past and look optimistically toward the future.

"Prince Philip and I have been deeply touched by the many kind messages about the Golden Jubilee," she said. "This anniversary is for us an occasion to acknowledge with gratitude the loyalty and support which we have received from so many people since I came to the throne in 1952."

Red, white and blue Union Jack flags fluttered across Britain to mark the anniversary. A 41-gun salute at noon in London's Hyde Park was followed by a 62-gun salute from the Tower of London an hour later.

Dorothy Cornwell, 69, traveled 50 miles to see the queen at the hospital, where the monarch's fans waited for more than an hour to wave and give her flowers.