United Kingdom: questions about the state of health of Queen Elizabeth II after her night in hospital – archyde

Held initially secret, the night spent in hospital by Elizabeth II raises questions on Friday about the state of health of the sovereign of 95 years, who maintains many of his appointments. “The royal sources are trying to give the impression that she has just done too much but they may have difficulty convincing the public now”, observes Richard Palmer, reporter at the Daily Express.

According to a source interviewed by the PA news agency, Elizabeth II, to whom Prime Minister Boris Johnson sent his best wishes for recovery, “is resting and doing light chores” Friday from Windsor Castle on the outskirts of London.

The previous hospitalization dates back to 2013

After almost 70 years on the throne, the Queen continues to display good form in public. She has recently participated almost daily in official commitments and her hospitalizations made public are extremely rare, the last dating back to 2013 for gastroenteritis. She was seen walking with a cane last week, a first since 2004.

Vaccinated against Covid-19, she again hosted Tuesday at a reception in Windsor in the presence of Boris Johnson and the American businessman Bill Gates, talking standing with the guests, without a mask. The next morning, she canceled a visit to Northern Ireland after “reluctantly accepting” her doctors’ advice to rest.

It was only when the tabloid The Sun revealed the information that Buckingham Palace made official, late in the evening her entry into Edward VII Hospital in London was made public, sources at the palace were quick to tell British media that she was She had gone there to consult specialists and that she had stayed all night only for “practical” reasons.

The “affection” of the British

“I think there is some irritation in the palace this morning that it has come out, but it reflects the enormous affection and concern of the country,” Robert Hardman, author of the royal family, said on the BBC. .

Elizabeth II holds the record for longevity on the British throne, which she acceded in 1952. She remains a beloved personality in Britain and around the world, praised for having preserved the monarchy despite the major transformations undergone by the United Kingdom during its reign, from decolonization to Brexit, and despite the many crises shaking it, such Diana’s death in 1997.

More recently, the shattering withdrawal from the monarchy of his grandson Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, gone to California, or the sexual assault charges against her son Andrew came to shake the institution.