Elizabeth II, 96, appeared at the crowd for the start of ceremonies organized in honor of its seventy years of reign, scheduled until June 5.
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It is 7 am this Thursday, June 2. The Mall, the aisle overlooking the Buckingham palace, a high place for British monarchical celebrations, is already full. Hundreds of crown fans unrolled the Union Jack, unfolded the campsite seats and released the chips, to be at the forefront of the “Trooping The Color”, the traditional military parade marking the official anniversary of the Queen, which inaugurates This year the platinum jubilee, the celebrations of the seventy years of the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, scheduled until June 5. It is the first time that a British monarch has reached such longevity on the throne.
Louise, Wendy and John arrived the day before the Midlands and settled as close as possible to the Buckingham Palace. By leaning a lot, we see the famous balcony, where the queen, 96, is supposed to make an appearance at the end of the ceremony. “We are of all the Trooping The Color, but this one is very special, this is the occasion for a lifetime,” explains Wendy, wearing a high-deck Jack. His friend, John, is also an unconditional of the Windsor: “I even attended the wedding of Diana and Charles, in 1981, at the Cathedral of Saint-Paul. I saw everything, I had a breathtaking place.”
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At 96, the queen has “mobility problems”, explains Buckingham. She no longer moves without her cane and her public appearances have been increasingly rare since the death of her husband, Prince Philip, in April 2021. She had to delegate to Prince Charles, her eldest son and future king, care To pronounce the Queen Speech, on May 10, a speech launching the parliamentary session in Westminster, considered as one of his main constitutional prerogatives. And, Friday, June 3, she should not attend the special jubilee service celebrated in the Saint-Paul cathedral. Crowned on February 6, 1952, the day of the death of his father, King George VI, the queen continues however to ensure weekly hearings with the Prime Minister (often by phone) and to read “State papers”, documents Officials transmitted daily by the Cabinet of the Prime Minister and the Foreign Office.
See the queen “one last time”
But on the Mall, the feeling that the second Elisabethaine is coming to an end (the first lasted from 1558 to 1603) is perceptible. Just like the marks of respect to the sovereign, almost general. “There have been many scandals in the royal family, but the queen has never taken a single miss. She is a figure that embodies the continuity and the unity of our country. We will not see it very long” , already regrets Sarah James, a young woman also from midlands with her husband and their two little girls, dressed in dresses in the colors of the national flag. Many families are present, many children wait in the sun, in the hope of seeing the royal family pass.
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