Queen Elizabeth II has travelled to Scotland for a week of traditional public engagements and <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/uk-news/2022/06/05/platinum-jubilee-ten-million-britons-hold-street-parties-for-queen-elizabeth-ii/" target="_blank">celebrations</a>. The <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/uk-news/2022/06/02/platinum-jubilee-queen-elizabeth-iis-presence-seen-across-uk-after-lifetime-of-service/" target="_blank">queen has mobility problems</a> that have forced her to cancel many <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/tags/platinum-jubilee/" target="_blank">public appearances in 2022 </a>and her presence in Scotland was not confirmed until Monday. She will make personal appearances at some of the Scotland events but Prince Charles, heir to the throne, and her daughter Anne, Princess Royal, will stand in for her in others. Prince Charles, known as the Earl of Rothesay in Scotland, and the Princess Royal will all take part in a series of public engagements over the coming days. On Monday, the queen was in Edinburgh for the Ceremony of the Keys — the traditional opener to Holyrood week for the royals. In the ceremony, the monarch was handed the keys of the Scottish capital and welcomed to her “ancient and hereditary kingdom of Scotland”. She was joined by her youngest son, Edward, and his wife, Sophie, known as the Earl and Countess of Forfar while they are in Scotland, for the event, which is taking place at the Palace of Holyroodhouse. In May, royal officials said the queen would not attend this summer's royal garden parties at Buckingham Palace or Holyrood. She spent an unscheduled night in hospital in October, forcing her to cancel a series of public engagements. The Scotland trip comes after her platinum jubilee celebrations, when she pledged to continue to serve the country “to the best of my ability supported by my family”. The four-day holiday included the Trooping the Colour parade, a church service at St Paul’s Cathedral, and an open-air concert at Buckingham Palace. She was not able to attend the Epsom races during her jubilee week and she also did not appear at Ascot — a traditional royal event where fashion meets horse racing. Queen Elizabeth has notched up a number of milestones in her record-breaking 70 years on the throne. She has reigned for longer than any other monarch in British history. The record was held by her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria, who reigned for 63 years, seven months and two days until 1901. At 96, Queen Elizabeth is the oldest current monarch and head of state in the world. Two kings have ruled for longer: France's Louis XIV for more than 72 years between 1643 and 1715 and Thailand's Bhumibol Adulyadej, who spent 70 years and four months on the throne until his death in October 2016. Queen Elizabeth has travelled to more than 100 countries since 1952 — another record for a British monarch — and made more than 150 visits to Commonwealth countries.
