Queen Elizabeth attends the christening of her two great-grandsons despite fears she would miss out
©AFP
Queen Elizabeth had double the reason to celebrate on Sunday as she attended the christening of her two great-grandsons in Windsor. After fears the royal would miss out on the occasion due to a sprained back, news has emerged that the ‘spiritual’ monarch was in attendance to support her granddaughters Princess Eugenie and Zara Tindall.
Last Sunday the 95-year-old was forced to miss out on the Remembrance Sunday ceremony at the Cenotaph for the first time in her 69-year reign following a few weeks of troublesome health. A speech last week, delivered by the Earl of Wessex on the Queen’s behalf read ‘none of us can slow the passage of time.’
After initial reports that Queen Elizabeth had missed the baptism of her great-grandsons, the joyous news that she was able to be there after all trickled down as she was photographed leaving the event. It was a special day for Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank who marked the christening of their firstborn, baby August.
Zara Tindall and her partner Mike Tindall, meanwhile, were celebrating the christening of their third child, son Lucas. Zara drove herself to the ceremony while Mike arrived in a separate vehicle.
Photos published on MailOnline show an excited Eugenie and Jack arriving together, the princess wearing a cream dress with navy and gold embroidery detail and a matching statement headband.
Queen Elizabeth has been having a tricky time with her health in recent times. In late October the royal canceled a trip to Northern Ireland at the last minute following doctor’s orders and spent the night at London’s King Edward VII’s Hospital to undergo ‘preliminary’ tests. She was later advised to rest.
The monarch also had to skip her COP26 commitments, addressing attendees in a video message instead. Commentator Penny Junor told The Sun it was hugely important for the ‘spiritual’ Queen to attend Sunday’s joint christening.
‘I’ve never heard of two royal babies being christened together like this,’ she told the publication. ‘The Queen is very spiritual, a christening is a very important occasion for the head of the Church of England, and being there will be of great importance to her.’
‘She’s very fond of Zara and Mike, and Eugenie too.’ Eugenie welcomed baby August, who is 13th in line to the throne, in February and had hoped to christen the young boy back in July. The event was called off, however, when an attendee was in close contact with a positive COVID case.
Zara and Mike Tindall, meanwhile, welcomed their son Lucas in March. It’s understood the young boys were christened in Holy Water brought back by Prince Charles from a recent trip to Jordan.
