Angelina Jolie Receives 'Honorary Dame' Award From Queen Elizabeth

Newly married Angelina Jolie, accompanied by her family, made a trip to Buckingham Palace to meet Queen Elizabeth II Friday. The actress and humanitarian had a private audience with the queen, 88, who presented her with the physical symbol of her recently bestowed title of honorary dame: the Insignia of an Honorary Dame Grand Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George.

They met for about 20 minutes, a palace source told People magazine, with most of the time taken up by the presentation and a following conversation the queen had with Jolie. According to Fashionista, the newly appointed dame wore a soft gray suit from British couture house Ralph & Russo's spring 2014 collection.

Brad Pitt and the couple's six children — Maddox, Pax, Zahara, Shiloh, Vivienne and Knox — were ushered in to the grand 1844 Room to be presented to the queen.

The honorary dame title recognizes Jolie's work in founding the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative and the contribution she has made toward the British foreign policy objective of ending sexual violence in conflict.

The Jolie-Pitts have had much to celebrate this year. Just a couple months ago, the couple held their wedding ceremony in the chapel of Château Miraval, the family's estate in the French village of Correns. The couple let their children get involved in the wedding-planning process, and Jolie's unique dress was decorated with her children's artwork.

"It was important to us that the day was relaxed and full of laughter," Pitt and Jolie told People. "It was such a special day to share with our children and a very happy time for our family."

Honors such as the conferring of knights and dames are normally given in public ceremonies, but sometimes they take place in private, at home or abroad — especially if the recipient, like Jolie, is not British.