Queen Sofia of Spain, great-great granddaughter of Queen Victoria and first cousin-once-removed of Prince Philip, has been ordered not to attend Friday’s Diamond Jubilee lunch for Queen Elizabeth II because of an escalating diplomatic row over Gibraltar and fishing rights.
Queen Sofia had apparently initially been told that she could attend the celebration in a ‘private capacity’ but has now been ordered by the Spanish government not to accept the invitation. The event will be attended by Royals from all over the world.
The last time the Spanish Royal Family were forced to decline an invitation was in 1981, the occasion being the wedding of the Prince of Wales to Lady Diana in Westminster Abbey. On that occasion it was in protest at the couple’s decision to begin their honeymoon with a visit to Gibraltar.