The Queen and Prince Philip visit St Kitts and Nevis (1985)

On 24 October 1985, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh paid a brief visit to St Kitts and Nevis in the Leeward Islands during their Caribbean Tour. Welcomed by the Governor General, the Queen was given a tour of the island, including the Brimstone Hill fortress that dominates the western coast of St Kitts. Designed by British engineers and built and maintained by enslaved Africans, the fortress stands as a symbol of the island’s colonial past. On 7 May 2023, the Prime Minister of St Kitts, Dr Terrance Drew, stated that his country is “not totally free“ as long as King Charles III remains head of state. As well as committing to holding a public consultation on whether St Kitts and Nevis should become a republic, Prime Minister Drew also said he would welcome an apology from the monarchy for its historic links to the slave trade. King Charles has himself pledged to deepening his understanding of the impact of slavery, and Buckingham Palace has said that it is co-operating with an independent study of the relationship between the transatlantic slave trade and the British monarchy. #StKitts #Nevis #Carribbean #Queen #QueenElizabethII #QueenElizabeth #TheQueen #PrincePhilip #DukeOfEdinburgh #Monarchy #Republic #KingCharlesIII #CharlesIII #KingCharles #King #Slavery #Colonialism #BritishEmpire #Commonwealth To license the footage featured in this clip, follow the link below: To search the ITN Archive collection on Getty Images, follow the link below: 🎥 Subscribe to our YouTube channel (tap the bell icon and stay up to date with all the latest ITN Archive videos!) - @ITNArchive 🎥 Follow us on Twitter - 🎥 Like us on Facebook - 🎥 Check out our TikTok - @itnarchive1955