Queen Elizabeth Awards Angelina Jolie With 'Honorary Damehood'
Actress Angelina Jolie had the rare opportunity of meeting Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace in a ceremony on Friday.
At the distinguished ceremony, the Queen awarded Jolie the Insignia of an Honorary Dame Grand Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George. Jolie received the honor due to her close work with British Foreign Affairs to end sexual violence in war zones in countries like Darfur and Afghanistan.
Jolie works as a special envoy for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. She is also the co-founder of the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative, sponsored by the U.K. government.
When it was announced at the End Sexual Violence In Conflict global summit back in June that she would be receiving an award from the Queen, Jolie said that it meant "a great deal […] to receive an honor related to foreign policy."
According to People magazine, a source at Buckingham Palace said Jolie and the Queen met for roughly 20 minutes, with much of the time being taken up by the official ceremony that included presenting Jolie with her honorary award. Jolie, accompanied by husband Brad Pitt, 50, and their six children, were then ushered into the 1844 Room to be presented to Queen Elizabeth II.
"The audience itself between Miss Jolie and the Queen was private," a Buckingham Palace spokeswoman said, according to The Daily Mail. "Her Majesty presented her with the insignia in its box. Mr. Pitt and the rest of the family were introduced to the Queen afterwards, however."
