Raw Footage: Queen Elizabeth II Hosts Nelson Mandela at State Banquet (1996)

“There is a new warmth these days in the friendship between South Africa and Britain...“ To mark the state visit of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa to Britain – the first state visit hosted by King Charles III – ITN Archive presents these rushes of Queen Elizabeth II hosting President Nelson Mandela at Buckingham Palace during his 1996 state visit to Britain. The Queen had invited Mandela to Britain following her own visit to South Africa in March 1995. At a grand banquet, both Queen Elizabeth and President Mandela made powerful speeches discussing the past, present, and future of the relationship between Britain and South Africa. The Queen celebrated the progress made in improving racial equality in South Africa in the years since the end of apartheid. Both Mandela and the Queen joked about the England cricket team’s tour of South Africa in 1995-6, which saw England lose a 5-match Test series to their hosts. The banquet was attended by senior members of the Royal Family including Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, Prince Andrew, Duke of York, Princess Anne, Princess Royal, and Prince Charles, Prince of Wales. Other high-profile attendees included former Conservative Prime Minister Ted Heath, former Labour leader Neil Kinnock, Labour MP Bernie Grant, Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey, and veteran ITN journalist Trevor McDonald. President Mandela attended the banquet along with his daughter, Zenani Mandela-Diamini. #QueenElizabethII #NelsonMandela #BuckinghamPalace #RoyalFamily #SouthAfrica #StateVisit 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