On Thursday, cannon salutes, the introduction of a Barbie doll, and a new portrait of Britain’s longest-serving monarch with two white ponies at Windsor Castle will commemorate Queen Elizabeth’s 96th birthday.
Ministers from the government joined members of the royal family in wishing the queen well, who has stepped aside from most public duties this year due to health concerns. Her birthday will be spent in Sandringham, Norfolk.
On Twitter, the queen’s grandson Prince William and his wife Kate wrote: “An inspiration to so many across the UK, the Commonwealth, and the world, it’s particularly great to be celebrating in this Platinum Jubilee year.”
When her father, King George VI, died on Feb. 6, 1952, while she was on an international tour in Kenya, Elizabeth became queen of the United Kingdom and more than a dozen other countries, including Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
Her husband, Prince Philip, who died last year at the age of 99 after spending more than seven decades by her side, broke the news to her.
Josef Stalin, Mao Zedong, and Harry Truman were in charge of the Soviet Union, China, and the United States, respectively, when she ascended the throne, while Winston Churchill was the British prime minister.
A gun salute will be fired in London’s Hyde Park to commemorate the monarch’s birthday, as well as the release of an image of the queen clad in a long dark green coat standing between two white ponies.
To commemorate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee this year, a Barbie doll dressed in an ivory gown with a blue sash was also issued.
After spending a night in the hospital in October for an undisclosed ailment and being advised to rest, Queen Elizabeth has largely avoided the spotlight. She was diagnosed with COVID in February and described herself as “weary and overworked.”
She has missed numerous major events, including the Remembrance Sunday gathering and the Easter service, despite continuing to organize meetings online.
