You may have heard that Queen Elizabeth II spent a very short amount of time with her great-grandchildren (Archie, 3, and Lili, 1) at her Platinum Jubilee. Despite the fact that many believed this was due to family tension caused by Prince Harry and wife Meghan Markle, a source recently told Us Weekly the short visit had nothing to do with drama, but was rather a result of the Queen’s low energy levels and mobility issues.
On one hand, we’re relieved that all is well in the family—but on the other hand, we’re so sad to hear that Her Majesty wasn’t feeling well enough to spend more time with everyone!
Queen Elizabeth finally met her great-granddaughter, Lilibet https://t.co/wZXco1YDaz
— TMZ (@TMZ) June 3, 2022
The Queen, 86, met Harry, Meghan, Lili, and Archie at the palace on the day of her Platinum Jubilee, which marked her 70th year as Queen. It was her first time meeting her one-year-old great granddaughter, Lili. According to an insider source, the meeting lasted less than an hour—but this isn’t because they couldn’t stand to be around each other. It’s only due to the fact that the Queen didn’t have energy to meet for longer.
As royal expert Jonathan Sacerdoti told Us Weekly, “[Queen Elizabeth II] was working very hard to maintain her strength. I think it’s totally understandable that she was saving her energy as best she could for all the events that she wanted to be at if she possibly could.” He went on to say that “we’re talking about someone in their nineties and a baby.” Fair point—spending time with a baby can definitely take a good amount of energy, and Her Majesty did have many events on the agenda over the four-day-long celebration.
“We saw that she did manage to appear several times in public, and that’s great,” Sacerdoti pointed out. Although the Queen did miss out on several festivities, such as the Party at the Palace concert and the Service of Thanksgiving, she was able to make an appearance at the Trooping the Colour Parade and the conclusion of the Platinum Jubilee Pageant.
Luckily, seeing her great-grandchildren “helped take the Queen’s mind off having to miss some of the festivities,” Us Weekly’s insider shared, adding that the children “added some light to her day.” Awww! “She thinks they’re adorable and gave Lili and Archie gifts.” We love to hear that.