‘She Loved France and We Loved Her Back’: Tears, Tributes at Paris Market Named after Queen

FRANCE 24: While Britain’s longest reigning monarch “held a special place in the hearts of French people”, as President Emmanuel Macron put it, one place in the French capital was especially important to the Queen. FRANCE 24 spoke to shopkeepers and grieving visitors at a flower market in central Paris that was recently renamed in honour of Queen Elizabeth II.

Queen Elizabeth II visited the flower market in Paris with former French president François Hollande and Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo on June 7, 2014. © Francois Mori, AP
The late Queen, who died on Thursday aged 96, visited France more than any other foreign country , meeting all 10 French presidents who took turns at the Élysée Palace during her 70 years on the throne.

“Elizabeth II mastered our language, loved our culture and touched our hearts,” Macron said in English in a video message on Friday. “We are grateful for her deep affection for France.”

The Queen made the last of her five state visits to France in 2014, to mark the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings. Stopping in Paris at the end of the trip, she unveiled a plaque at a flower market that was renamed in her honour. » | Benjamin Bodman | Friday, September 9, 2022