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The Queen, 95, had rolled out the red carpet for her American visitors. And she was in a sunny mood to match the sweltering heat as she chatted easily with the President and First Lady.

Wearing sunglasses and holding his wife’s hand, Mr Biden arrived a few minutes earlier than scheduled. He spent almost 45 minutes, slightly longer than anticipated, having tea with the Queen after inspecting a guard of honour in the castle quadrangle and witnessing a military march past.

He is the 13th US president to meet the Queen while in office.

Mr Biden, 78, said they had spoken about Russian president Vladimir Putin and China’s leader Xi Jinping during afternoon tea, which followed a display of pomp and pageantry from the Grenadier Guards in the castle grounds.

He said: “We had a long talk. She was very generous. I don’t think she’d be insulted, but she reminded me of my mother. In terms of the look of her and just the generosity. She was very gracious.”

Mr Biden, speaking at Heathrow before flying out of Britain, said that he had invited the Queen to the White House after she asked about it.

He added: “She said, ‘What’s it like in the White House?’ I said, ‘Well it’s magnificent but it’s a lot of people.'”

The Queen may have been wondering how it had changed after several previous visits.

She first went to Washington DC as Princess Elizabeth in 1951 with Prince Philip and stayed with President Harry S Truman and his family.

The Bidens joined the monarch at Windsor after attending the G7 summit in Cornwall.

They were driven into the quadrangle in a relatively humble Range Rover – rather than the armoured limousine known as The Beast.

They had already met the Queen on Friday when she attended a reception for G7 leaders at the Eden Project in Cornwall.

The Queen was wearing a Stewart Parvin dress in a floral print jacquard in shades of pink, olive and russet, and she teamed it with a hat by Rachel Trevor-Morgan and the diamond Jardine Star brooch. Mrs Biden wore a powder blue skirt suit.

The carefully choreographed welcome echoed the one given to Donald Trump in 2018, when the controversial then-US President travelled to Windsor to meet the monarch.

After a guard of honour formed of The Queen’s Company First Battalion Grenadier Guards gave a royal salute, the US national anthem was played beneath blue skies and blistering sun.

The Queen then left Mr Biden to view the guardsmen.

He was accompanied by the officer commanding the guard of honour, Major James Taylor, and Major General Christopher Ghika, to inspect the troops, before returning to the dais to watch the military march-past with the Queen and the First Lady.

Major General Ghika, who commands the Household Division, was the top UK commander in the US-led international anti-Isis coalition until two years ago.

After the visit, the Bidens were seen hugging on their first trip to the UK.

Mr Biden is the first overseas head of state welcomed by the Queen since the death of the Duke of Edinburgh in April.

His remark that the Queen reminded him of his late mother is another nod to a figure he has frequently cited since taking office.

His mother Jean, who died aged 92 on January 8, 2010, has had a profound influence on his life and politics.

He once said: “She was the centre of our family and taught all of her children that family is to be treasured, loyalty is paramount and faith will guide you through the tough times. She believed in us and, because of that, we believed in ourselves.”

There have been 14 US presidents during the Queen’s long reign, from Mr Truman to Mr Biden.

The only one she never met was Lyndon B. Johnson.

The event marked a busy few days for the Queen, who travelled to and from Cornwall by overnight royal train before attending her official birthday parade at the castle on Saturday.

She is also likely to make an appearance at the Royal Ascot horse racing event later this week.

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