Queen Elizabeth II marks 90th birthday with parade
Associated Press
Queen Elizabeth II and her family marked her official 90th birthday Saturday with a parade, a colorful military ceremony and an appearance on the Buckingham Palace balcony.
Flag-waving throngs crowded into the spacious Mall in front of the palace to honor the longest reigning monarch in British history.
Prince William and his wife Kate’s daughter, 1-year-old Princess Charlotte, delighted the crowd by making her first appearance on the balcony, standing alongside the queen and her husband, Prince Philip, who turned 95 on Friday.
The queen traveled by horse-drawn carriage, sometimes waving to the throng.
“She looked lovely,” said Joanne Forster, who along with her husband had scheduled a week’s visit from Northamptonshire to come watch the parade.
“She’s our queen and she makes us very proud. We love her. She’s done her job, 100 percent, for the Commonwealth, for the British people. She just goes on and on and on. I don’t think she’ll ever retire.”
The goodwill and excitement were palpable as the queen’s carriage approached the palace, her imminent arrival announced by a military band on horseback.
Prince Charles, heir to the throne, and his son Prince William rode down the Mall on horseback with Princess Anne, the queen’s daughter, a skilled equestrienne.
The Trooping the Color parade, which featured more than 1,500 soldiers and officers, included a fly-by of historic World War II aircraft and modern fighter planes.
The rip-roaring aerial display was a main draw for William Ross, an Army veteran. But he wanted to pay his respects to the queen as well.
“I was a soldier for the queen for 22 years,” said Ross, 71. “I think she’s done a very good job. She’s had lots of trial and Members of the British military march during Trooping the Color, a ceremony that dates back to the time of Charles II in the 17th century when the colors of a regiment were used as a rallying point in battle. tribulations. She’s like a battleship. She just sails on.”
Birthday festivities continue today with a luncheon in front of the palace. The palace has invited roughly 10,000 people who work at charities supported by the queen to the open-air festivities.
Street parties also will be held in many towns and cities throughout Britain and in other Commonwealth countries.
The queen’s real birthday is in April. The official birthday is timed in hope of fair weather — a custom that began in the 18th century.