Queen Elizabeth Cancels Birthday Plans as Coronavirus Hits Britain

Britain's Queen Elizabeth will not celebrate her 94th birthday in any special way and has asked that there be no gun salutes to mark the occasion because it would not be appropriate while the country battles a deadly coronavirus outbreak.

Ceremonial gun salutes, in which blank rounds are fired from various location across London, are typically used by the royal family to mark special occasions such as anniversaries and birthdays. The Queen's birthday is on April 21. The Queen was keen that no special measures were put in place to allow gun salutes as she did not feel it appropriate in the current circumstances, a royal source said. It is believed to be the first such request in the Queen's 68-year reign, the source said.

Buckingham Palace last month said a parade to celebrate the Queen's official birthday, which is celebrated in June, would not go ahead in its traditional form in light of restrictions on social gatherings. There are no alternative plans to replace the parade, the source said on Saturday.

"'We will not be marking Her Majesty’s birthday in any special way' this year due to the #coronavirus crisis," ITV reporter Chris Ship, who first reported the queen's request, tweeted citing a source.

https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2020-04-18/queen-elizabeth-cancels-gun-salutes-for-her-birthday-itv-reporter