Obama Meets Queen Elizabeth II At Buckingham Palace (SLIDESHOW) (VIDEO)

LONDON - President Barack Obama arrived at Buckingham Palace Wednesday evening for a private meeting with Queen Elizabeth II. Several thousand well-wishers crowded the traffic circle in front of the gated palace on Wednesday to cheer and wave as the limousine carrying Obama and first lady Michelle Obama rolled past.

During their private meeting Obama gave Queen Elizabeth II an iPod while she gave Obama a silver-framed photograph of herself and Prince Philip.

Obama arrived at Buckingham Palace at around 5:30pm London time and was scheduled to attend a dinner with G-20 leaders later in the evening.

See a slideshow of the Obamas meeting with the Queen. Scroll down for video of the event.

• • • • • • The Obamas pose with Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip.

Read more on Michelle's new hairdo and the outfit she wore to meet the Queen.

Read all about the G-20 summit and Obama's European trip at HuffPost's G-20 BigNews page.

Comments

[antnee one]

06:56 PM on 04/07/2009

There was some issues raised about Michelle touching the Queen. I have seen much to do about nothing with regards to it but for the most part I believe the Obama's won hearts and minds on there trip across the pond. I recently read an interesting article about it, here's the link.
http://brooklyninvegas.com/?p=309

[frenchie25]

12:38 PM on 04/04/2009

I love London, the Queen, the pomp and circumstance, the whole thing. But honestly, Queen E, you're in your own house. You can put your bag down now.

Why is something always strapped to Queen E's arm? Ladies, imagine wearing your bag around the house all day? What the he ll's in there anyway? At least she's got someplace handy for her new iPod.

[brandalucia]

12:07 PM on 04/04/2009

When Michelle Obama returns to the US, the first visitors will be the style editors from the fashion mages who THIS week said Obama looked fantastic but privately will tell her that her choice of clothes was a disaster and she MUST get some help. They did this for Hillary Clinton too since she looked a mess until the Manhattan designers got her into some decent designers. Michelle's clothes are too summery looking for winter in Europe...showing her arms in 40* weather is rather silly. J Crew is great for weekends in the Hamptons in summer but for a trip to meet the Heads of State and the Queen in such garrish fabrics and colors? What can she be thinking?

[Rosey]

11:47 AM on 04/04/2009

The Obamas are fabulous! I always thought the Royals were taller....Prince Phillip especially..... England still feels the need for the pomp and circumstance of the Queen. Frankly, all the moolah she takes from the Government should be used for the poor and disenfranchised. She is wealthy beyone belief. But that's how the wealthy stay wealthy....take.....take....take.

[jenrose]

07:50 AM on 04/04/2009

Well when you get older you shrink if you've ever noticed being around grandparents etc.. Phillip used to be very tall..Anyway I've allways admired the queen she is a wonderful person. This is a very nice meeting and a good chuckle with the small conversation. The queen shows her admiration and warmth.

[AZ4thatone]

08:46 PM on 04/03/2009

The Royals look like Hobbits next to the Obama's! Who knew they were so small? IMHO, what's all the hoopla about the meeting? The Queen put her arm around Michelle OMG!!! C'mon, get real already this is 2009 and it's becoming more and more apparent that there is a new world order moving in. I guess we can go with the flow and worry about the big stuff, or we can hold ourselves back and worry about who is hugging whom.

[Catamount]

08:28 PM on 04/03/2009

no one would touch the queen of hawaii because she was black. mmm.

[lizr]

03:58 PM on 04/03/2009

where's the hug! I missed it. Historic! the Oba mas can even hum anize the Wind sors, that outer space race :)

[Seablue2u]

12:32 PM on 04/03/2009

Queen Elizabeth knows class when she sees it. So does Michelle!

[learntofly]

02:26 PM on 04/02/2009

Ridiculous to be thinking that there is any real argument here about small gifts, the queen and Michelle showing a spontaneous sign of affection, etc.

Put it into perspective. Our country and the world is facing much greater issues. If this is all we're talking about - then things are not nearly as bad as we thought. Obama's trip to the G20 gets an A+.

[Agentlady007]

10:55 PM on 04/02/2009

We need to pass the universal healthcare reform bill. This is taking too long. I wonder how The Queen pays for the healthcare of people who cannot afford prescription medicine. They seem to be taken care very well over there, but there are also too many housing projects IMO. Still children who beg for money in the streets.

[Quotidien]

01:57 PM on 04/02/2009

Queen Elizabeth II....isn't that the name of a boat?

Who would name their child after a maritime vessel?

[tel8034]

02:32 PM on 04/02/2009

Pardon me but it was the other way around.

THE BOAT WAS NAMED FOR QUEEN ELIZABETH II (AFTER SHE BECAME QUEEN) ..... The QE II was launched in 1967

Queen Elizabeth II was born on April 21, 1926.

So Queen Elizabeth was 41 years old when the QE II (the boat) was launched.

[Quotidien]

03:23 PM on 04/02/2009

Ohhh gee, thanks for taking my comment seriously enough to display to everyone in the blogoshphere that you have absolutely no sense of humor.

[claypoint2]

11:30 AM on 04/02/2009

In looking at these photographs, my first reaction was one of surprise at observing how diminutive the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh look next to the Obamas.

[Mij13]

12:10 PM on 04/02/2009

Maybe that's because they're not as special as they say they are. And maybe the queen doesn't deserve to be given a palace, or several, to live in. Because they have idiots all over the world thinking that they're from "royal bloodlines" when they're actually just people like you and me.

[tel8034]

02:23 PM on 04/02/2009

Miji13,

Don't you think it's time to get over it?

The American Revolutionary War with the British was fought 1775 - 1783.

The War of 1812 - 1815 with the British is also over.

So why would British customs, culture, protocol and the royal family concern you in 2009?

It's their country and it's their right to decide how they live, and how they deal with their royals.

The Queen is the head of state for ALL Commonwealth countries - 53 countries, across all continents, with a combined population of 2.1 BILLION people (which is almost 1/3 of the world's population) ........ And these 2.1 BILLION people are not idiots

The days of George Bush are over, where the USA feels that it has the entitlement to DICTATE how others live in THEIR OWN COUNTRIES.

Follow President Obama's lead ............... While at the G-20 Summit he repeatedly said that he was NOT there to LECTURE but to LISTEN.......... President Obama understands that his role is NOT to DICTATE to any nation, and that all countries (including the USA) would make their contributions to any international conclave from their unique perspectives and from the unique cultural and political climates in each of their individual countries.

[Mij13]

12:26 PM on 04/02/2009

Dininutive? Okay. That might be because they are not special people at all. They just have a lot of stupid people fooled into thinking that they are.

[Catriona]

08:35 AM on 04/03/2009

Or because they are short?

[DeeDeeDaGumby]

11:23 AM on 04/02/2009

:::leaving the door open for the next poster:::

who would have thought that a story about a couple of gifts would bring out such ugliness and hate..
Good luck in there......

[jenrose]

11:05 AM on 04/02/2009

Why all this crazy hoopla about this meeting? It went very well and everyone is over reacting to a very nice banter and warm greeting by all parties. I enjoyed watching and as a US citizen I've allways admired the queen and even more so today.

[Mij13]

11:15 AM on 04/02/2009

Admire the queen? Really? Why, for heavens' sake? She is nothing. She and her family take from the poor and keep it all for themselves. Then they say they need more, and they are not amused by your admiration, and they make fun of it. Why would you admire something like that?

[Mij13]

12:34 PM on 04/02/2009

By the way, don't forget to curtsy if she lets you kiss her foot.

[georgeeparker]

05:30 PM on 04/02/2009

Exactly how does the Queen take from the poor and keep it for herself? As far as I know, she has never worked on Wall Street. She is the head of a constiutional monarchy (look it up) she takes nothing from the poor. She rules at the pleasure of Parliament. And unlike American elected officials, she doesn't have to suck up to lobyists in an effort to fund her next election campaign. You are merely demonstrating the parochialism of demonstrated by far too many Amercians. An attitude that has landed us in our current predicament.

[cocolola]

10:07 AM on 04/02/2009

Awkward exchange? The Obamas are visitng "the royals" for the first time and they are unfamiliar with the protocol. Does anyone expect smooth sailing all the way? I think not. Ease up a little, please.

[Roguewolf]

10:19 AM on 04/02/2009

http://www.newsweek.com/id/191421

Only a few weeks on the job, Obama created a minor diplo-mess when British Prime Minister Gordon Brown came to the U.S. for a visit. Obama's historic Oval Office desk, a gift from Queen Victoria to Rutherford Hayes, is made from the timbers of the HMS Resolute. Brown proudly presented Obama with a pencil holder carved from its antislavery sister ship, the HMS Gannet. Classy! Obama lamely reciprocated with a DVD set of Hollywood movies, including "Psycho." When Brown got back home, he discovered they didn't work in his European player. "At a minimum you don't want to give offense," says a former White House official who helped orchestrate foreign visits for a previous president. "That was really phoning it in." (The official, like others quoted here, asked not to be named disparaging a sitting president.) Apparently it was a rookie mistake. According to a person close to the situation, Obama hasn't yet appointed a chief of protocol and his staffers, still unpacking, didn't realize that the State Department has an entire office dedicated to foreign visits.

Rookie moves, not those of an experienced executive.

[Mij13]

10:36 AM on 04/02/2009

Seriously? You need an education, bud.

[StillIRise]

11:01 AM on 04/02/2009

"Rookie moves, not those of an experienced executive."

Are you suggesting that an "experienced executive" perhaps like Sarah Palin is alleged to be, would be more familiar with royal protocol because of the several months she was governor of the least populated state in our nation, or maybe because she could see Russia from her backyard?? George Bush had never even traveled overseas before he assumed the office of the presidency. How familiar was he with royal protocol, except for what he may have learned from his parents?

President Obama has never been president before and has only been President for two months! He's learning the same things that virtually any new president would be learning about the aspects of the presidency that are understandably unfamiliar to him. If other presidents before him have had an advantage, it's not because of their "executive experience." It's because of their family background, their name and their wealth, all of which exposed them to experiences that most others do not have the opportunity to experience, such as meeting with the Queen of England.

Your judgment of the Obamas is very petty and merely reveals another weak attempt on your part to grasp at any straw you can get hold of to find a reason to criticize President Obama.

[soapington]

11:07 AM on 04/02/2009

The Obamas also presented the Queen with a rare book of songs by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart that Rodgers had signed in May 1952. I'd say that's a pretty good gift, especially since the Queen loves classic American musicals.