Queen Elizabeth II spent one night in the hospital

British Queen
New concern for the Queen: Elizabeth II in hospital for one night

Queen Elizabeth II at an appointment in Scotland in early October

© Jeff J Mitchell / Picture Alliance

What about Queen Elizabeth II’s health? First a walking stick provided a topic of conversation, then she canceled a trip to Northern Ireland. Now the 95-year-old spent one night in the hospital.

Concern for the British Queen is growing: Queen Elizabeth II spent one night in the hospital this week. The Buckingham Palace announced on Thursday evening. The reason for the stay was therefore preliminary examinations.

The PA news agency reported, citing palace circles, that the queen had been examined by specialists in the private King Edward VII hospital in London and had spent the night in the clinic “for practical reasons”. It was too late on Wednesday evening to drive the Queen to Windsor Castle, about 40 kilometers away. So she stayed in the clinic. On Thursday, the 95-year-old was back at Windsor Castle at lunchtime and continued to be in good spirits, it said. She even did light work at her desk.

But despite the palace’s attempts to allay concerns about the Queen’s health, the events of the past few days are likely to cause discomfort among many subjects. It was only on Wednesday that Elizabeth had to cancel a visit to Northern Ireland for health reasons. There she wanted to attend a service to celebrate the founding of Northern Ireland as part of the United Kingdom. According to Buckingham Palace, she had “reluctantly” accepted the advice to take a few days off.

The Queen walks on a stick

Only a few days earlier there had been speculation about her state of health when she – highly unusual – showed up with a walking stick at several appointments and was sometimes accompanied by her daughter, Princess Anne. The Queen last needed a stick almost 20 years ago. At the time, however, she was recovering from knee surgery.

The last time the Queen spent a night in the hospital was in 2013, when she was being treated for a gastrointestinal infection. According to the British newspaper “The Sun” the current visit to the clinic is said to have been only the fifth long hospital stay in 40 years.

On Tuesday, the Queen had received business representatives at Windsor Castle and, according to participants, made a fit impression. In total, the 95-year-old had planned 15 public appointments in October alone. Now it will probably have to slow down a little.

Only recently, the Queen made headlines with her rejection of the “Oldie of the Year” award from “Oldie” magazine: You are always as old as you feel, replied the Queen. She is therefore afraid that she will not meet the criteria for the honor. In any case, the British Queen is not lacking in humor.

jum / DPA

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