Queen returns to Buckingham Palace after 74-day-long summer holiday
The Queen has returned to Buckingham Palace after a ten-week summer holiday in Balmoral.
Summer may have long ended for most of us, but our 93-year-old monarch has been taking a well-deserved break at her Aberdeenshire residence, together with the Duke of Edinburgh, for the past 74 days.
She first departed for Balmoral Castle on 26 July, according to a tweet from royal correspondent Emily Andrews.
Queen Elizabeth then returned yesterday, which was signalled by the raising of the Royal Standard flag in the palace which shows she is there.
READ MORE: You'll be surprised to hear how much work the Queen does at Balmoral
Her Majesty jumped right back into work – meeting with the Privy Council, according to the Court Circular. together with MPs including Jacob Rees-Mogg.
The Queen is officially on hols!She was at Buckingham Palace yest for a meeting of the Privy Council, to swear in the new political members. Today she’ll travel to Balmoral for her annual summer holidays (delayed due to the new British PM) & will return to London in early October pic.twitter.com/Hl61iwThqs
— Emily Andrews (@byEmilyAndrews) July 26, 2019
As is tradition, the Queen was joined by a number of visitors during her time in Balmoral this summer, mostly consisting of her family.
In late August, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge arrived in Scotland with children George, Charlotte and Louis.
The Cambridges joined the Queen at a church service in Balmoral, together with the likes of Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, as well as Prince Edward with his daughter Lady Louise Windsor, and Princess Anne with her son Peter Phillips and his wife Autumn.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his girlfriend Carrie Symonds are also believed to have been guests at Balmoral this summer, according to reports.
It is believed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have never visited the property together – although Prince Harry has visited many times in previous years.
The Queen at Balmoral
Balmoral Castle is one of two personal and private residences owned by The Royal Family, according to the Royal.uk website.
It was bought outright in 1852 by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, and has been royal property ever since.
Queen Elizabeth first visited in the summer of 1952 together with the Duke of Edinburgh, and it is believed she has visited every summer since.
Balmoral is said to be the location where the Queen is at her most happy.
"I think Granny is the most happy there. I think she really, really loves the Highlands," said Princess Eugenie in a documentary called ‘Our Queen At Ninety’.
“The Queen is at her most relaxed when she’s at Balmoral - it’s her favourite of the royal residences,” said royal expert Katie Nicholl on ITV’s ‘Lorraine’ show.
However, the Queen still achieves a surprising amount of work while she is on her Balmoral holiday.
READ MORE: What has happened while the Royal Family has been at Balmoral
The Sunday Times’ royal correspondent Roya Nikkhah said during an episode of Yahoo UK’s ‘The Royal Box,’: “For her [The Queen], although it’s her great three-month-long holiday, work goes on as usual.
“She still does her red boxes every single day at Balmoral, she meets prime ministers, she meets American presidents or incoming heads of state.”
