Queen Elizabeth II in Isolation

Elizabeth II, image from Wikimedia Commons

With coronavirus spreading fear around the world, Queen Elizabeth II was forced to isolate at Windsor Castle but that does not mean that she would slow down. The 94-year-old monarch has maintained an active schedule while keeping the spirits of every Briton up to persist despite the threat of COVID-19.

While a busy round of schedules for spring and summer, including the Trooping the Colour and the traditional garden parties, has been cancelled, The Queen, has maximized her strong social media clout to reach out to millions of royal followers around the world. Since moving to Windsor Castle last March, The Queen has addressed the nation twice in a span of seven weeks!

Her first was a special broadcast on April 5, where the monarch thanked people for following government rules to stay at home and praised those "coming together to help others". She also thanked key workers, saying "every hour" of work "brings us closer to a return to more normal times".

"Never give up, never despair," was what the Queen Elizabeth II said in her second message, in time for the 75th anniversary of the Victory in Europe (VE) Day on May 8.  Her rousing message was a tribute to those who fought for freedom and peace, and at the same time, a call for everyone to never give up in these trying times.  The Queen also made reference to the country’s current lockdown and the huge casualties that coronavirus had claimed.

The Queen also participated in a tribute for International Nurses Day on May 12, where she was joined by other members of the Royal Family. The monarch can be heard at the start of the video in a telephone call to medical staff, where she praised nurses for having "quite an important part to play recently" in light of this health outbreak.

The Queen knows how to keep her spirit up and spending time with her beloved horses is surely a mood booster. Here daily exercise involved riding her favourite pony, Carltonlima Emma, which she rides around the castle's private park. Carltonlima Emma is a black fell pony, named after the stud near Leeds where she was bred.

Palace aides also told Vanity Fair  that the Queen is keen to return to work as soon as it is safe for her to do so . “She can’t be seen to be going against official government advice, but it’s fair to say she’s looking forward to getting back to normal,” said a royal source.   

All senior members have been called upon to work together and support the Queen, who is in regular contact with all of her family. The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, in particular, kept a full round of virtual engagements, delivering messages to various organizations close to their advocacies, while also helping boost the morale of medical workers and first responders.