Queen Elizabeth II had not been seen in public since the month of March when many countries around the globe went into lockdown because of the coronavirus pandemic. She had spent most of her time working remotely and never left royal grounds.
Things changed on Thursday when Her Majesty, accompanied by Prince William and his wife, Kate Middleton, visited the Defense Science and Technology Laboratory, near Salisbury.
The rare joint appearance with her grandson was meaningful on many levels. First, as COVID-19 continues to spread across Europe, the Queen opted not to wear a mask at the age of 94.
It sends a strong message; she is not ready to bow down in front of the virus. Moreover, according to reports, the Queen was getting tired of being isolated and was eager to get back to work and project the “soft power” of the British monarchy.
Second, after months of rumors about abdication, Queen Elizabeth made a joint appearance with Prince William, something that had not occurred since 2017. For some experts, Prince William has seen his portfolio grow exponentially in the monarchy in recent months.
He is being given more responsibilities. This is enough for some observers to conclude that Her Majesty might be grooming her grandchild to replace her when and if she decides to retire.
Third, the two royals met with experts who played a huge role in helping an ex-Russian spy and his daughter, who were poisoned by a nerve agent in 2018. This incident had epic international repercussions at the time.
This is definitely a queen who intends to play her part to the fullest, including foreign policy. They also met with scientists involved in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Prince William recently addressed how the coronavirus pandemic changed a lot of things globally. He shared: “I can’t talk about coronavirus without mentioning about how many people sadly lost their lives and how terrible and sad that all is. But I think the tiny little ray of light, if, if there’s any ray of light from this, is that it allows us to take stock and to refocus our priorities.”
He continued: “I’ve been really heartened by what I’ve been hearing from other people and how they’ve started to appreciate nature and experience it, and see all the things that they never thought they would.”
Fans of the royal family were happy to see the Queen, and they find that she looks radiant. Although many of them think she should have worn a mask, they applauded her for rewarding Prince William with a major appearance.
