A smiling archive image and a few lines to confirm what was already known. It is the sober message with which Buckingham Palace today seals the 95th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II on the Twitter and Instagram profile of the British Royal Family. A few lines to emphasize that Her Majesty continues to observe “the period of Royal Mourning in Windsor Castle”, 10 days after the 99-year-old death of Prince Consort Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, buried in the crypt of the adjacent St George’s Chapel on Saturday last.
And to recall some biographical notes: «Today – we read – is the Queen’s 95th birthday. The Queen was born at 2.40 am on April 21, 1926 in the residence at 17 Bruton Street, Mayfair, London. She was the first daughter of the then Duke and Duchess of York, who would later become King George VI and Queen Elizabeth ”(also known as the Queen Mother).
So no public event for what is Queen Elizabeth’s first birthday without Prince Philip. For the queen there will be no blank shots at the Tower of London, nor at Hyde Park. Furthermore, due to restrictions introduced for the pandemic by Covid, the queen will not be able to reunite with family members, who will visit her in turn. At his side will alternate his children and some closest family members: in particular Princess Anna, his second child, the wife of the heir to the throne Charles, Camilla, and that of the fourth child Edoardo, Sofia, all already vaccinated with at least the first dose.
There will be no grandson Harry, who has returned to the United States with his pregnant wife and little son Archie, after flying to the UK last week for his grandfather’s funeral. In recent days, rumors appeared in the British press that he would have postponed his return to California, also in light of the two-hour conversation he had with his older brother William and his father Carlo, the first face to face after the shocking interview with Oprah Winfrey. but the Daily Mail photographed his arrival at the mansion in Montecito, California, where he lives with his family.
The atmosphere remains in every way of mourning. A subsequent public celebration is not expected either: traditionally postponed to June, with the so-called Trooping the Color parade, but canceled from the official calendar both last year and this year due to the pandemic. In the meantime, a message sent via Twitter by Boris Johnson was anticipating everyone in the wishes to the sovereign. «I would like to send my warmest wishes to Her Majesty the Queen – it says – on her 95th birthday. I have always had the highest admiration for His Majesty and for his service to this country and the Commonwealth. I am proud to serve you as Prime Minister ”.