Order of Bath: Prince Charles takes over lead role from HM the Queen

[-:Undertaker:-]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...d-regalia.html

The Queen takes a back seat to Charles: Prince handed lead role at Order of Bath service after palace aides fear Westminster Abbey stairs are 'too steep' for his mother

- Plans for the Queen to recreate a photograph of her grandfather George V at the historical ceremony were cancelled
- Prince of Wales makes presentation of coins to 'ease the Queen's comfort,' says Buckingham Palace
- Steps to sovereign's stall in Tudor chapel are steep, and Queen would be wearing full regalia including heavy cloak
- Palace say Queen is not unwell and she made the decision to change plans after a dress rehearsal
- Announcement is a rare admittance that at 88, the Queen’s duties are, occasionally, becoming too challenging

It is a ceremony of great pomp and circumstance and one in which she has participated dutifully throughout her 62-year reign.

Yesterday, however, the Queen was forced to make a rare public concession to her age as, at the 11th hour, she pulled out of part of a service for knights of the Order of the Bath at Westminster Abbey.

Dressed in an elaborate but cumbersome robe with a full train, worn over an evening dress and with the heavy Queen Mary tiara on her head, the 88-year-old would have been required to walk up and down a short, but steep, flight of steps in the Lady Chapel of Henry VII.

The Queen, circled, was unable to stand for the entire ceremony and instead allowed Prince Charles to lead


The Queen was due to be photographed making an offering during this morning's Westminster Abbey service - echoing a picture painted of George V


There was no suggestion that the Queen was unwell, and she and the Royal Household had taken the decision to change the plans following a dress rehearsal yesterday

A camera had even been installed to capture the occasion so that it could be compared with a painting of her grandfather, George V, at the same ceremony in 1929.

But following a dress rehearsal on Thursday night, aides reluctantly admitted that negotiating the steps in full regalia would be too much for the sovereign.

Although she did attend the service, she sat and watched from the relative comfort of her stall as her son and heir, Prince Charles, stood in for her.

It is unlikely that the Queen will ever take part in the full ceremony again because she attends only every eight years and will be 96 when she is next due to appear.

The Order of the Bath service, held every four years, is always attended by Charles but he is joined every eighth year by the Queen, who was last present in May 2006


The Queen's grandfather, King George V, during the Service of the Order of the Bath service


The Queen is escorted inside Westminster Abbey past cheering crowds hidden under umbrellas hoping to catch a glimpse of the Monarch


Sir Derek Oulton (left) sits alongside other Knights in the Abbey cloisters. During the service a number of senior military figures were installed as Knights Grand Cross replacing previous holders who had died.

Wonderful pictures, there are more via the link if you are interested.

What a fab history we have. Prince Charles is looking more and more like a King.

Well done to the new Knights. Probably the proudest moment of their lives.

Thoughts?

[Shar]

I'm not a big royal family fan or anything but I do think their attire is cool