Queen Victoria succeeded to the throne of the United Kingdom in June 1837. It was during her long reign that the modern form of state visits began to take shape. A full state visit usually included a state banquet given by the Queen at Windsor Castle and a formal reception by the City of London at Guildhall. All foreign heads of state made official visits to the Queen were monarchs, either of European or Asian countries. The Queen also received many less formal visits from foreign heads of state to Britain, like one by Emperor Nicholas I of Russia in June 1844.