Queen Elizabeth II is positive for Covid 19, Buckingham Palace announced this Sunday at midday. For the time being, the 95-year-old monarch would only feel “mild” symptoms, specifies the British royal palace.
The sovereign, who had recently been in contact with her son Prince Charles two days before he tested positive, will nevertheless carry out “light tasks” over the next week, Buckingham Palace said.
Since her interview with her son, the Queen had made several public appearances. She notably made a public engagement in person last Wednesday, receiving Major General Eldon Millar, responsible for liaison between the Queen and the armed forces, and his predecessor, Rear Admiral James Macleod, at Windsor Castle, at a forty kilometers from London, the main place of residence of the sovereign.
Vaccinated three times
A video of the meeting showed her welcoming the two soldiers standing, smiling, wearing a patterned dress, with a cane in her hands. “As you can see, I can’t move,” she said pointing to her left foot or leg. This appearance of the queen had given a reassuring signal regarding her state of health, particularly scrutinized since she spent a night in the hospital in the fall for “preliminary” examinations, the nature of which has never since been clarified. On Tuesday, she received by videoconference the new ambassadors of Estonia and Spain.
Since a brief hospitalization in October, the health of the queen worries. In particular, she had canceled several appearances at events in December. She is triple vaccinated, like Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, whom Elizabeth Windsor “sincerely” wishes to see become “queen consort” at the end of her reign.
Her husband, Prince Philip, died in April this year following more than seven decades of marriage. Last June, following his first infection, Prince Charles testified: “I was lucky and I got out of it quite well. But I got it, so I can understand what others have been through,” he said.
Queen Elizabeth passed the milestone of 70 years of reign on February 6, an unprecedented longevity for the British monarchy. Four days of festivities are planned to celebrate its platinum jubilee.
