Queen Elizabeth II used her cane to pay tribute to her late husband, Prince Philip, at a reception honoring her reign’s 70th anniversary on Saturday.
On the eve of her Accession Day, the monarch, 95, was pictured with the Duke of Edinburgh’s walking stick at Sandringham House in Norfolk, England. Her pre-Platinum Jubilee appearance was her first in public this year.
“I immediately recognized the stick because it was normally placed in a jar near the front door,” royal biographer Gyles Brandreth told the Telegraph on Monday. “It was the Duke’s stick, and the Queen’s use of it is quite poignant.”
The Queen was spotted gripping her cane as she took in the festivities of the evening, which included a cake-cutting ceremony.
Philip last used the cane in public in 2013, while recovering from abdominal surgery. He died in April 2021 at the age of 99.
The Queen, for her part, began using a cane to aid her walking in October 2021 during an event at Westminster Abbey, raising health worries.
Her Royal Highness, however, was merely using the cane “for her comfort,” according to a source who spoke to Page Six at the time.
The Queen, who is the longest-reigning and longest-living monarch in British history, raised health concerns later that month when she was admitted to hospital for a night, forcing her to cancel a trip to Ireland. She was in “good spirits” at the time, according to palace officials, and she was back to her royal duties by the end of October.
The UK government has had a 10-day plan in place for when the Queen passes away for some time, which includes identifying the prime minister as the official who will deliver the news.
Prince Charles, the Queen’s 73-year-old son, is the heir apparent to the British monarchy. The Prince of Wales’ mother approved his second wife, Camilla Parker Bowles, receiving the title of “Queen Consort” rather than the initially planned “Princess Consort” when he wins the throne in a surprise statement Saturday night.