Queen Elizabeth II is known to be always practical. She recently celebrated her Platinum Jubilee. The four-day celebration started on June 2 and concluded on June 5. All the royal relatives graced the occasion, including the ex-royal couple Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. It was Markle’s first time returning to the UK with her family after her bombshell interview with Oprah.
The duo arrived along with their son Archie, 3, and daughter Lilibet, 1. Queen Elizabeth also met her great-granddaughter for the first time during the celebrations. Lilibet, who is named after the queen herself, got to spend little time with her great-grandmother. What was the reason for their short meeting? We’ll tell you.
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Why Queen Elizabeth Kept Her Meeting With Great Granddaughter Lilibet Short
The monarch, 96, has been unwell for a while. The day-to-day activities have themselves become quite strenuous for her. According to the royal expert Jonathan Sacerdoti, “she was working very hard to maintain her strength.” She wanted to preserve her energy for the functions and had a short meet with Lilibet. “I think it’s totally understandable that she was saving her energy as best she could for all the events that she wanted to be at if she possibly could.”
Reports claim that the queen met her grandson and his family for less than one hour. This led to the speculation that tensions are still high between Harry and his relatives. But it seems the reason was different and Sacerdoti released a statement to clarify it.
Another royal expert told Us. “We’re talking about someone in their 90s and a baby,” adding that Elizabeth had to conserve her energy for the many events that took place to commemorate her 70 years on the throne. “We saw that she did manage to appear several times in public, and that’s great.”
About The Queen’s Jubilee Celebrations
The queen made her Jubilee debut on June 2 at the Trooping the Colour parade, which traditionally celebrates the monarch’s birthday. The sovereign smiled and waved from the balcony of Buckingham Palace with Prince Charles, Duchess Camilla, Prince William and Duchess Kate by her side. They were also joined by Cambridges’ children Prince George, 8, Princess Charlotte, 7, and Prince Louis, 4.
Harry and Meghan also attended the event, but they were spotted watching the parade from the Major General’s Office. Buckingham Palace previously announced that only “those members of the Royal Family who are currently undertaking official public duties” would be permitted to stand on the balcony alongside the queen.
Monarch Was Not Well During The Celebrations
After the parade, the palace announced that Elizabeth would miss the Service of Thanksgiving that was held on June 3. “The Queen greatly enjoyed today’s Birthday Parade and flypast but did experience some discomfort,” Buckingham Palace told Us in a statement at the time. “Taking into account the journey and activity required to participate in tomorrow’s National Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul’s Cathedral, Her Majesty with great reluctance has concluded that she will not attend.”
The monarch later also missed the party at the Palace concert on June 4 but made a surprise appearance the following day after the conclusion of the Jubilee Pageant. The insider later told Us that getting to see Lili and Archie helped take the queen’s mind off having to miss some of the festivities.
“After reluctantly pulling out of Party at the Palace, spending time with her great-grandchildren and seeing Lilibet turn 1 added some light to her day,” the source explained. “She thinks they’re adorable and gave Lili and Archie gifts.”
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