Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in Alberta in 1990.

Well-wishers are encouraged to line the Royal Motorcade route. Information and maps of motorcade route and road closures in the City of Edmonton on May 23 and 24 (pdf, May 16, 2005)

City of Calgary - Royal Visit Motorcade - designated viewing locations and traffic advisories

Over 25,000 Albertans came out to welcome Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth and His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh at the Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton on May 23. The celebration was the Royal Couple's first official stop in Alberta during their 2005 visit.

The Royal Couple watched a performance by the White Buffalo Dancers and Drummers Society and listened to a performance by the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, Senator Tommy Banks on the piano, Jens Lindemann on jazz trumpet and the Black Pioneer Heritage Singers.

The Queen also took part in a cake-cutting ceremony with Alberta Premier Ralph Klein while the crowd sang "Happy Birthday" for Alberta's centennial.

The Royal Couple then left for the Hotel Macdonald before attending a dinner hosted by the Government of Alberta at the Westin. At this dinner, Premier Klein announced that Highway 2 between Edmonton and Calgary would be named the Queen Elizabeth II Highway.

At 260 kilometres, the highway is the longest continuous stretch of road named after a monarch in Canada and the only Canadian highway named for Her Majesty (the Queen Elizabeth Way in Ontario is named for the Queen Mother).

See the photo gallery of the day's events.

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was the guest of honour during a celebration for the renaming of the Provincial Museum of Alberta to the Royal Alberta Museum. The Queen toured the museum and some of the exhibits while Alberta artists continued to entertain the 1,500 people who came out to cheer on The Queen.

At the same time, His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh was near Fort McMurray for an aerial tour of Alberta's impressive oilsands.

In the afternoon, as The Queen made her way on a walkabout on the Alberta Legislature grounds, she greeted many Albertans who offered flowers and words of welcome. An estimated 5,000 people attended today's events to see Her Majesty.

Several people in attendance also brought along special guests of the four-legged variety - Pembroke Welsh Corgis. The Queen stopped to chat with dog owners Karen Lord, Cecilie Lord, David Norwood, Ken Mullins, Todd Murray and Jennifer Hancock. All are members of the Pembroke Welsh Corgi Club of Canada.

Later in the afternoon, The Duke of Edinburgh handed out more than 100 prestigious Duke of Edinburgh's Award certificates.

In the evening, the Royal Couple attended a dinner hosted by the Government of Canada at the Northlands Agricom.

See the photo gallery of the day's events.

The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh visited Edmonton City Hall in the morning, including a visit, specifically requested by The Queen, with the youth and staff of the Kids in the Hall program and a tour of the facility.

The Royal Couple then moved outside for a long walkabout through Churchill Square. The square was full with about 10,000 people hoping to get one last look at the Royal Couple before they left the city.

In the afternoon, The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh arrived in Calgary and went straight to the Museum of the Regiments where they toured parts of the museum. The Queen visited and had photos taken with three of Her Majesty's Canadian Regiments — King's Own Calgary, Calgary Highlanders and Canadian Forces Military Engineers Branch — of which she is the Colonel-in-Chief. Her Majesty opened the Museum of the Regiments in June of 2000 and made a special request to view a gallery during her visit.

The Royal Couple then attended a luncheon hosted by Alberta Premier Ralph Klein at the Roundup Centre where the Premier announced that a graduate scholarship program has been named in honour of The Queen's visit to Alberta during the province's centennial year.

The final event during the Royal Couple's visit to Alberta was the Official Farewell to Canada and it was the first time ever that the farewell was performed before this many people. The Pengrowth Saddledome was sold-out and packed to the rafters with 17,000 well-wishers bidding their farewell to The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh. The event was a colourful pagentry of Alberta's southern western heritage and a celebration of the province's centennial in a farwell to the Royal Couple who left Canada to return home.

See the photo gallery of the day's events.

Her Majesty The Queen and His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh visited Alberta from May 23 to 25 as part of our province's centennial celebrations. Albertans had several opportunities to see the Royal Couple during their visit.

The visit began in the afternoon on May 23 with an official welcome to Alberta and centennial celebration at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton.

On May 24, The Queen spent the day in Edmonton, beginning in the morning with a tour of The Provincial Museum of Alberta.

In the afternoon, The Queen visited the Legislature Building for an unveiling ceremony, an address to the Legislative Assembly, and a walkabout on the south Legislature grounds.

In the morning of May 25, The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh were welcomed at Edmonton City Hall and completed a walkabout in Sir Winston Churchill Square to take in musical entertainment and displays. They then departed for Calgary.

The visit concluded on May 25 with a City of Calgary centennial event at the Pengrowth Saddledome.

• More information

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in Alberta in 1959.

"THE SPIRIT OF NATION BUILDERS"
(from past accomplishments to present challenges to future opportunities)

The centennial of the entry into Confederation of the Provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta in 2005 is a milestone anniversary of truly national proportions. One hundred years ago, these two provinces became part of the Dominion of Canada.

The story of Saskatchewan and Alberta is truly the story of Canada - the story of nation builders. The Aboriginal and Metis People, explorers and fur traders, homesteaders, railway workers and immigrants from the four corners of the world, they arrived at different times and in different ways. Yet they all came to the Canadian Prairies to first find and then build a home for themselves and their families. What they held in common was a spirit of dedicated purpose in creating both a sense of place and of belonging to this remarkable land.

The visit of Her Majesty The Queen and His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh was a unique opportunity for the Royal Couple, and indeed all Canadians, to honour "THE SPIRIT OF NATION BUILDERS" as exemplified by this important anniversary. From past accomplishments (e.g. those who: explored rivers, established homesteads, policed foothills, laid tracks or ensured parliamentary democracy) to present challenges (e.g. those working to: promote literacy, develop the oil sands, preserve family farming, develop leading-edge medical research or retain linguistic/cultural heritage) to future opportunities (e.g. those who aspire to: redevelop urban cores, research new technologies, preserve parks and wetlands, advance medical research or diversify economies), nation building like Canada itself is very much a work in progress.

The 2005 visit encompassed events, celebrations and ceremonies that paid tribute to nation builders (past, present and/or future) and the spirit of purpose, dedication and pride that is the essence of the country we all call home. As Queen of Canada, Her Majesty provided a fitting focus for all Canadians to use this anniversary to recognize and celebrate those things willed to us by a heritage of nation builders - our country, citizenship and identity.