Queen Elizabeth Celebrated Her 94th Birthday with a Socially-Distanced Ceremony
Despite Queen Elizabeth's annual birthday parade, Trooping the Colour, being canceled this year, the 94-year-old royal still managed to celebrate the special occasion with a scaled-down ceremony.
On Saturday, in place of the parade, the Queen was serenaded by a small team of 1st Battalion Welsh Guardsman and military musicians at Windsor Castle, where she's been self-isolating with Prince Philip for months.
Stepping out solo for her first official appearance since quarantine began, the monarch wore a matching turquoise coat dress and hat, and accessorized with a diamond leek Welsh Guards brooch in honor of the regiment marching on her behalf at the event.
RELATED: The Palace Shared Queen Elizabeth's First-Ever Public Zoom Call
Earlier this year, it was announced that Trooping the Colour would not go ahead in its traditional form due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, but that other options were being considered. And it appears as if Buckingham Palace found a suitable solution with this year's event, as it observed the government's recommended social-distancing measures. In addition to the public and the rest of the royal family not allowed to attend, all soldiers and guardsmen stood six feet apart during their performances.
Meanwhile, on her actual birthday in April, the Queen called off the usual gun salutes, and, instead settled for a series of Zoom calls with her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.