US president Richard Nixon invited the queen to make a royal visit to the US in 1973. But a trip wasn't possible until three years later. At that time, the queen's staff considered carefully whether it was wise to visit in 1976, the bicentennial of America's freedom from England. "One would wish to consider whether it was right for The Queen to be associated in this way with the celebration of a rebellion from the British Crown," prime minister Edward Heath's secretary Robert Fraser wrote in a letter. The queen did visit that year, but she arrived on July 6. "July 4th was really pushing it," said David Walker, a member of the British embassy. "Forgiveness can go so far."
