Queen Elizabeth celebrated her ‘second birthday’ of the year: why monarchs have this privilege

Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her “official” birthday this Saturday with a scaled-down but showy military ceremony at Windsor Castle, her residence on the outskirts of London., due to restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Accompanied by her cousin Edward, Duke of Kent, the sovereign, who turned 95 on April 21, attended the military parade known as the “Color parade” (standard parade) in the ring in front of the castle, in which the company of Scots Guards, cavalry and musicians participated.

On the arrival of the queen, who met on Friday in Cornwall (south-west England) the G7 leaders, the national anthem was sounded, after which Elizabeth II attended the ceremony, during which social distancing has been maintained due to the coronavirus, from a tent set up for the occasion.

Finally, there was a save 41 cannon shots and the British Royal Air Force (RAF) “Red Arrow” aerobatic planes performed their traditional flight, leaving a trail of red, white and blue smoke.

British monarchs have ‘two birthdays’, the real one and another official celebration which normally takes place in London on the second Saturday in June., a tradition established in 1748 to facilitate public celebration with better time.

Trooping the Color goes back to the century 17th century, although the tradition of having it coincide with the birthday of the service monarch began with George II in 1748. The king, born in November, I consider that That month it would be too cold for the soldiers to parade. So he decided to have it coincide with Trooping the Color in June. Since then, UK monarchs have had the option of having an official birthday in addition to the private birthday.

In 2020, Trooping the Color was also an unusually smaller event held at Windsor, where the monarch resided during the lockdown imposed by the coronavirus pandemic.

This saturday is Elizabeth II’s official first birthday without the company of her husband, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, died on April 9 at the age of 99, twelve days before his actual birthday. His next of kin were also absent.

The royal family, led by the queen, received on Friday in a formal event in Cornwall area for G7 leaders, the seven most developed economies, holding a summit in Carbis Bay, in the presence of the President of the United States, Joe biden.

Before going to dinner with acquaintances Eden Project, a space where the different climates of the planet are recreated, the British monarch presided over a joint photograph of the leaders of the group of industrialized democracies.

The British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, and the French president, Emmanuel Macron, flanked the queen in the front row of the group, while the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, Yes Biden they stood at extremes. The American president, who attends the first international meeting since his accession to the White House, is the 13th American president with whom the British sovereign has reached an agreement.

Biden and his wife Jill will be received by Elizabeth II at an official ceremony Sunday also in Windsor, when there will be another parade and they will have tea with the sovereign.

(With information from EFE and AFP)

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