Queen Elizabeth II has admitted to experiencing physical difficulties associated with age just 10 days after her Platinum Jubilee that marked 70 years of service to the British people.
The Queen, 95, required the use of a walking stick for her engagement at Windsor Castle on Wednesday and had to call over Defence Services Secretary Major General Eldon Millar and his predecessor Rear Admiral James Macleod when she was unable to walk over to greet them.
The Defence Services Secretary is the member of the Royal Household who connects the Queen to the Secretary of State for Defence and the Chiefs of Staff that relate to the Queen’s position as head of the British armed forces.
Upon entering the Queen’s Oak Room, Macleod greeted the Queen and asked her how she was.
“Well as you can see I can’t move”, the Queen replied to the duo, before they walked over and shook her hand.
While the Queen was unable to walk across the room, she was able to take a step forward for the handshake, the Daily Mail reports.
The meeting marking the official Defence Services Secretary handover comes as the Queen’s first public engagement since her coronavirus scare when it was revealed that she met with Prince Charles just two days before he tested positive for the virus last Thursday.
Buckingham Palace has refused to comment on whether the Queen had the virus or not, citing medical privacy, however, the Queen has not been reported to have displayed any coronavirus symptoms.
The Queen appeared to be in good spirits during the televised meeting despite the news that Prince Charles’ – the heir to the British throne – charity ‘The Prince’s Trust’ will be investigated by the police over an alleged cash for honours scheme, as well as the announcement that one of her other sons Prince Andrew has had to settle outside of court for $12 million with Virginia Giuffre who has accused the Prince of sexual assault.
In the settlement agreed between Andrew and Giuffre, she has agreed to spare the royal family any embarrassment during the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations this year in an agreed “period of silence”, as a condition of the settlement.
Prince Andrew has maintained his innocence throughout the ordeal and released in a statement that his reasoning behind the settlement – which includes a “substantial” donation to Giuffre’s victim’s rights charity – is to “demonstrate his regret for his association with Epstein by supporting the fight against the evils of sex trafficking, and by supporting its victims”.
Brits will however be glad to hear that they will receive a four day UK bank holiday weekend later this year from Thursday the 2nd to Sunday the 5th of June to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
The Queen has been adored by millions if not billions of people around the world throughout her reign and is the sovereign of 15 nations, including Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.
Since her coronation in 1953, the Queen has seen 14 British Prime Ministers elected during her reign and has watched over Britain through multiple positive and negative events, most recently providing hope to the nation throughout the pandemic – broadcasting in April 2020 at the height of the pandemic that “we will meet again“.
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