The Queen shares emotional tribute to the nation on her birthday

'It is difficult to escape a very sombre national mood'

queen carries cash
(Image credit: Rex Features (Shutterstock))

'It is difficult to escape a very sombre national mood'

Today, on her official 91st birthday, the Queen praised the nation for remaining 'resolute in the face of adversity' in an emotional letter shared by Kensington Palace.

The message was shared as she and the entire Royal family joined the annual Trooping the Colour parade down the mall to celebrate her birthday.

It follows the recent tragedies of the Manchester and London Bridge attacks, as well as the Grenfell Tower fire.

the queen

In her letter to the people, Queen Elizabeth wrote: ‘Today is traditionally a day of celebration. This year, however, it is difficult to escape a very sombre national mood. In recent months, the country has witnessed a succession of terrible tragedies.

the queen

As a nation, we continue to reflect and pray for all those who have been directly affected by these events. During recent visits in Manchester and London, I have been profoundly struck by the immediate inclination of people throughout the country to offer comfort and support to those in desperate need.

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Put to the test, the United Kingdom has been resolute in the face of adversity. United in our sadness, we are equally determined, without fear or favour, to support all those rebuilding lives so horrible affected by injury and loss.’

Despite the sombre mood, the Royals carried on with the celebrations as planned. Prince Charles and Prince William donned their uniforms and mounted horses towards Buckingham Palace, while Kate Middleton and Camilla went for the horse-drawn carriage option instead.

The family then made the traditional appearance on the Palace's balcony to wave to the crowds. We have to admit Prince George and Princess Charlotte looked particularly adorable, especially with their cheeky grins which we're pretty sure Prince Harry approved of.

Penny Goldstone

Penny Goldstone is the Digital Fashion Editor at Marie Claire, covering everything from catwalk trends to royal fashion and the latest high street and Instagram must-haves.

Penny grew up in France and studied languages and law at the Sorbonne Nouvelle University in Paris before moving to the UK for her MA in multimedia journalism at Bournemouth University. She moved to the UK permanently and has never looked back (though she does go back regularly to stock up on cheese and wine).

Although she's always loved fashion - she used to create scrapbooks of her favourite trends and looks, including Sienna Miller and Kate Moss' boho phase - her first job was at MoneySavingExpert.com, sourcing the best deals for everything from restaurants to designer sales.

However she quit after two years to follow her true passion, fashion journalism, and after many years of internships and freelance stints at magazines including Red, Cosmopolitan, Stylist and Good Housekeeping, landed her dream job as the Digital Fashion Editor at Marie Claire UK.

Her favourite part of the job is discovering new brands and meeting designers, and travelling the world to attend events and fashion shows. Seeing her first Chanel runway IRL at Paris Fashion Week was a true pinch-me moment.