Queen Elizabeth II gave Philly the Bicentennial Bell in 1976. Her son Prince Edward just rededicated it.
The rededication ceremony kicked off a two-day Philadelphia tour for Prince Edward, who has visited the city twice before.
In 1976, Queen Elizabeth II recognized the Bicentennial by gifting the United States a bell forged at the same foundry as the Liberty Bell, and famously declaring in a speech in Philadelphia that Britain “lost the American colonies because we lacked that statesmanship to know the right time, and the manner of yielding, what is impossible to keep.”
On Wednesday, the late queen’s youngest son, Prince Edward, the Duke of Edinburgh, helped kick off festivities leading up to next year’s Semiquincentennial by rededicating the Bicentennial Bell in its new home, the Benjamin Rush Garden in Old City.
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“Yes, it is true we did have a couple of wars against each other,” said Edward, the brother of King Charles III. “But to use a sporting analogy, when you consider the number of for and against, actually the for is more. We’ve been on the same side more times than we’ve been on the opposite sides.”
The rededication ceremony was the kickoff of a two-day Philadelphia tour for Edward, who has visited the city twice before. During the trip, which was organized by the Independence Historical Trust, he was also scheduled to appear at events related to his Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award USA, which promotes youth community service and physical activity.
Mayor Cherelle L. Parker joined Edward at the Bicentennial Bell ceremony and at a luncheon at Carpenters Hall, where the First Continental Congress met in 1774. They were led into the ceremony by an honor guard of the First Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry, one of the oldest and most decorated American military units.
Parker said the bell’s rededication was “a reaffirmation of the values we continue to hold dear. They are democracy, resilience, and mutual respect.”
“Your presence underscores the lasting bond between our peoples, a relationship rooted in history, deep cultural and business ties, but also thriving in the aspirations of our youth and in the promise of the future we build together,” Parker said.
Parker is Philadelphia’s 100th mayor, and the first person to hold her office, Humphrey Morrey, was appointed by William Penn shortly after the Quaker statesman founded the Pennsylvania colony in the name of Edward’s ancestor King Charles II.
After Elizabeth’s visit, the Bicentennial Bell spent decades atop the former Independence National Historical Park Visitor Center and was rung twice a day. It then spent 11 years in storage before being put back on public display last year at the garden that sits on the site of Rush’s former home, honoring the noted physician, Founding Father, and Philadelphian who served as surgeon general for the Continental Army.
In addition to being a major site for the Semiquincentennial, Philadelphia next year will host major events including the MLB All-Star Game and several matches during the FIFA World Cup. This year, the city is hosting part of the Club World Cup, an international competition for professional soccer teams.
Gregg Caren, president and CEO of the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau, said the duke’s visit was an ideal way to formally launch the run-up to 2026.
“Being able to sort of prime the pump for the balance of 2025, during which of course we’re going to host the Club World Cup as well, there’s a lot of European interest already for this year, ramping straight into next year,” said Caren, whose organization cosponsored Edward’s visit.
Caren said that the tourism agency is “trying to lean in on Philadelphia being the birthplace of American democracy and the most welcoming city.”
“Probably now more than ever, the reassurance, the reaffirmation of the relationship between the United Kingdom and the United States — and of course with Philadelphia being where it all started — I think it even takes on that much more meaning,” he said.
Forty-nine years ago, Elizabeth in her Philadelphia speech shared a similar message.
“Together as friends and allies,” she said, “we can face the uncertainties of the future, and this is something for which we in Britain can also celebrate the Fourth of July.”