Queen Elizabeth was all by herself when she watched the scaled-down Trooping the Colour birthday parade in her honor on Saturday, June 13. While it took place at Windsor Castle, where she has been isolating with her husband Prince Philip since March, the Duke of Edinburgh did not join his wife and make a public appearance as well.
Understandably, social distancing was implemented at this year's unusual celebration due to the coronavirus. However, Prince Philip's non-appearance sparked speculations about this health.
However, the reason the Queen was without Prince Philip was because he's already retired from his royal duties three years ago, according to Hello. Prince Philip didn't need to carry out a public engagement as Trooping the Colour is an official royal event.
The Queen, however, had the company of the royal staff who were watching the parade from their windows in their quarters at the Windsor Castle. There were also no other spectators on the ground because Buckingham Palace requested that the crowd stay away and instead watch the parade on television to ensure physical distancing and protect everyone's health from the coronavirus.
Queen Elizabeth actually celebrated her birthday on April 21, when she turned 94 years old. However, traditions dictated that the monarch celebrates her official birthday with a lavish parade every second Saturday of June.
This year's parade, however, had to be changed as it was inappropriate to continue the tradition in light of the coronavirus pandemic. The Trooping the Colour usually attracts thousands of people in the streets, which would make social distancing a challenge to implement.
According to BBC, Queen Elizabeth celebrated her birthday parade for the first time in Windsor Castle last Saturday, in her more than 60 years of reign. The last time a sovereign had her birthday in this estate was in 1895, during Queen Victoria's reign. The only other time a Trooping the Colour parade was canceled was in 1955, when the national rail strike happened.
Meanwhile, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip are expected to stay at Windsor Castle for an indefinite period. The Queen will not be attending royal events in the next few months as she's part of the vulnerable sector against COVID-19.
However, this doesn't mean that the monarch is retiring and abdicating from her throne. There have been no official plans set for the Queen to give up her reign and let her son, Prince Charles, take over.
