In her first semi-public showing since the lockdown measures were first imposed, Queen Elizabeth II attended a traditional military ceremony that celebrated her birthday.
The queen, who is 94 years old, wore the same outfit that she wore when she addressed the British parliament at the end of last year. Usually, her majesty’s birthday ceremony, also known as ‘Trooping the Colour’, is one of the biggest and most public events in the royal calendar.
However, the event has been dramatically reduced in scale as Buckingham Palace agreed to abide by the social distancing measures that were recommended to them by the British government. The Daily Mail described this year’s event as “small [and] brief”.
The event took place in the Quadrangle with her majesty present. This is where the famous changing of the guards take place when the Queen is in residence.
The small ceremony was conducted by the 1st Battalion Welsh guards, all of whom were socially distancing from each other throughout the entire ceremony. The battalion has been one of the most involved in the British military’s response to the global pandemic.
As they have been assigned for this year’s ceremony, the 1st battalion has been stationed at Windsor Castle. Although much was simplified because the peculiarities of this year, the soldiers all gave the refined drill and performance that is to be expected from them.
The event began as the Queen entered into the area and received a salute from the soldiers. A series of military drills and musical performances by the marching band took place.
Despite the smaller than usual ceremony, her majesty looked very happy and cheerful as she carefully watched the soldiers celebrate her birthday. She was seen smiling through the entire event.
Even in her reign that spans decades, the trooping of the color was only cancelled once in 1955. Because a national strike, the event was reduced in scale much like this year’s ceremony.
One of the biggest differences this year was the lack of audiences. While the usual event would attract thousands of tourists to London as the royal family parades around the capital, no invitations were sent out to the public for this year’s event.
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Replaced!