The start of the Queen’s anniversary celebrations should have brought a sigh of relief to royal fans around the world. The monarch has shown up, only briefly, but really in good spirits.
There’s something going on in the British capital this Thursday. The multi-day celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II’s 70th jubilee began with the monarch’s traditional birthday parade, “Trooping the Colour”. At the associated military show, Prince Charles represented his 96-year-old mother. She later provided relief herself within minutes.
What is Trooping the Color?
Trooping the Color has been the official birthday parade of Britain’s Head of State for more than 260 years. The Queen’s birthday is April 21st, but because of the usually better weather, the military show always takes place in June.
Because the jubilee was recently in poor health and had therefore canceled several appointments. For a long time it was not even clear whether she would be present at the start of the celebrations in London. But she showed up, made the crowd in front of Buckingham Palace cheer and inspired with simple gestures. “She will show that she is still very much alive,” said Anna Whitelock, a professor and historian specializing in the history of the British monarchy, t-online in advance – and she was right.
At around 1:20 p.m., the Queen stepped onto the balcony for the first time that day. The 96-year-old presented herself in a light blue dress, which she also wears in the latest official photo, with a matching hat. She wore pink lipstick and blush. Leaning lightly on a walking stick, Elizabeth II was standing in front of thousands of Britons and numerous other royal fans who had traveled there.
At her side she had the Duke of Kent, her cousin. She chatted with him, beamed and seemed amazed – perhaps at the many people present or at the parade in her honor.
Withdraw after only ten minutes
Ten minutes after the Queen stepped onto the balcony, she was gone. But another performance was to follow. Shortly before 2 p.m., she appeared again with her closest family, including Prince William, Duchess Kate, Duchess Camilla and Prince Charles, who had recently taken the birthday parade for the monarch as her representative on the parade ground for the first time. This time she grabbed a pair of sunglasses, possibly to be able to look more comfortably at the sky towards the air show. With a smile on her face, she watched as helicopters and airplanes flew over the palace.
During these minutes, the Queen kept talking to her great-grandson, little Prince Louis, who, like Grandpa Charles, had just had a premiere (read more about this here). Elizabeth II seemed to be showing him something in the distance and explaining things. Again, she had her cane with her for support. The huge crowd in front of the palace cheered the family, and probably the Queen in particular. Screams and applause could be heard clearly. The Queen chatted with various family members. She seemed very interested and beamed warmly.
Ten minutes later, the Queen and her family retreated again. After the air show, the monarch waved again in a friendly manner, smiled at the crowd and went back to the palace. Fans cheered for her again and should be reassured: the queen made a relaxed and happy impression and seemed to enjoy the spectacle. This was made clear by a few gestures.
