Queen Elizabeth II turns 96

Gun salutes will ring out Thursday to mark Queen Elizabeth II’s 96th birthday

LONDON (AFP) - Gun salutes will ring out Thursday to mark Queen Elizabeth II’s 96th birthday, although the monarch herself was expected to mark the occasion with little fanfare.

It has been a troubled year for Britain’s royal family, with concerns over the queen’s health and questions over the future of the monarchy.

Rounds will be fired from the Tower of London and Hyde Park in the British capital, where a military band will also play "Happy Birthday".

Royal tradition since the 18th century has also seen the monarch have a second, official birthday, typically celebrated in warmer weather in June.

This year’s official birthday coincides with four days of public events from June 2 to 5 to mark the queen’s record-breaking 70th year on the throne.

British media said the queen has flown by helicopter from her Windsor Castle home, west of London, to her Sandringham country estate in eastern England.

There, she is reported to be spending time at the cottage where her late husband Prince Philip lived after he retired from public life in 2017.

The Daily Mirror quoted an unnamed royal source who said the trip was being viewed as a "positive step" given the queen’s recent health problems.

Since an unscheduled overnight stay in hospital last October, she has cut down massively on public appearances on doctor’s orders.

A back complaint and difficulties standing and walking have seen her cancel a number of engagements, including recent church events to mark Easter.

A bout of Covid-19 in February left her "very tired and exhausted", she told doctors and patients at the Royal London Hospital during a virtual event earlier this month.

But her grandson Prince Harry told US broadcaster NBC in an interview aired on Wednesday that she was "on great form" when he saw her last week.

The queen was last seen in public at Westminster Abbey in central London on March 29 at a memorial service for Prince Philip, who died last year aged 99.

Health and succession

 The queen’s enforced retreat from public life in her Platinum Jubilee year has increased attention on the succession and the monarchy’s future.

Her eldest son and heir, Prince Charles, has assumed more of his mother’s responsibilities in preparation to take over the throne.

His popularity has increased in recent years, according to an Ipsos poll of more than 2,000 adults in Britain in March.

But his 43 percent approval rating is still well behind his mother (69 percent), his eldest son Prince William (64 percent) and his daughter-in-law Kate Middleton (60 percent).

Some 42 percent of those surveyed also said they believed Charles, 73, should step aside for William, who turns 40 in June.

Aside from questions about the queen’s health and the succession, the royals have rarely been off the newspaper front pages due to a succession of scandals.

Last month there was controversy after the queen’s disgraced second son Prince Andrew supported her at Prince Philip’s memorial service.

In February, he settled a US civil claim for sexual assault that had earlier seen him stripped of his honorary royal military titles and charitable roles.

The palace is said to be bracing for fresh revelations about royal life from Harry, who is due to publish his memoirs later this year.

The former British Army captain quit the royal frontline last year and moved to California with his American wife Meghan Markle.

From there, the couple accused the royal family of racism, while Harry claimed his father Charles and brother William were "trapped" within the system of the British monarchy.

The future of the royal family’s global reach is also far from assured.

The queen is head of state of Britain and 14 other Commonwealth countries around the world.

But Barbados became a republic last year and a number of other Caribbean countries, including Jamaica, have since indicated they want to follow suit.

KEY MOMENTS IN THE QUEEN S LIFE

1926: Royal birth

Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor is born at 2:40 am on April 21, 1926 in Mayfair, central London. She is the first child of the Duke and Duchess of York, who will become King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.

1940: Move to Windsor

As Nazi Germany bombs the British capital, Elizabeth and her younger sister, Princess Margaret, move to Windsor Castle, west of London, for their safety.

During World War II, she trains as a military auto-mechanic.

1947: Marriage and family

Princess Elizabeth marries Prince Philip at Westminster Abbey.

Their first child, Prince Charles, is born in 1948. A daughter, Anne, arrives in 1950, followed by Andrew in 1960 and Edward in 1964.

1952: Princess to Queen

Princess Elizabeth, then aged 25, is visiting Kenya with Philip when her father dies aged 56 on February 6, 1952.

She cuts short the trip and rushes back to Britain.

1953: The coronation

She is crowned at Westminster Abbey on June 2, 1953, in front of 8,500 assembled guests.

The ceremony is watched across the world and leads to a surge in sales for television sets.

1977: Silver Jubilee

The queen reaffirms the vow of lifelong service to Britain and the Commonwealth she had made in a speech aged 21 in 1947.

She tours the country and the Commonwealth. Celebratory street parties brighten the economic gloom of industrial decline and strikes at home.

1992: ‘Annus horribilis’

Prince Charles separates from Princess Diana, and Andrew splits from his wife, Sarah.

The queen’s only daughter, Princess Anne, divorces her husband, Mark Phillips. Windsor Castle is also seriously damaged by fire.

The queen calls the 12 months her "annus horribilis".

1997: Death of Diana

Diana’s death in a car crash on August 31, 1997 rocks the royal family to the core, provoking rare criticism of the queen for continuing to stay at her Balmoral estate in Scotland.

She eventually returns to Buckingham Palace, where the Union Jack is lowered to half-mast, and she makes a televised tribute to Diana, helping to calm public anger.

2002: Golden Jubilee

Celebrations for the queen’s 50 years on the throne come in the same year as the deaths of her own mother and younger sister Margaret, and show public support for the monarchy.

Huge crowds gather on The Mall in central London to watch Queen guitarist Brian May play the national anthem from the roof of Buckingham Palace before a star-studded pop concert.

2011: Ireland state visit

The queen’s high-profile visit to Ireland is the first by a British monarch since the Republic of Ireland won independence in 1922.

An address in Irish, plus other symbolic gestures, helps galvanise reconciliation and cement the peace process in Northern Ireland, after years of conflict over British rule.

2012: Olympics and Diamond Jubilee

The queen and other senior royals visit every region of Britain to mark her 60 years on the throne. Beacons are lit across the country, and a river pageant is held in London.

A surprise cameo for the monarch alongside James Bond actor Daniel Craig is a hit at the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics.

2021: Covid, Philip, health fears

The coronavirus pandemic forces the ageing queen into self-isolation at Windsor, from where she makes public appearances over video conference.

Prince Philip dies aged 99 in April 2021, while later that year fears grow for the queen’s own health after she spends a night in hospital and is forced to cut back her duties.

2022: Platinum Jubilee

On February 6, she becomes the first monarch in British history to rule for 70 years. Two weeks later, she tests positive for Covid-19 but with only "mild" symptoms before returning to work in March.