Queen Elizabeth Passes the Baton on Commonwealth Day in a Fetching Pink Suit and Hat: Pics!
Happy Commonwealth Day! Queen Elizabeth launched the Commonwealth Baton Relay on Monday outside of Buckingham Palace in London.
Her Royal Majesty addressed the crowd as she participated in the first step of the 12-month journey for the baton.
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“Contained within the Baton will be a written message that will be opened and read at the Commonwealth Games in Australia next year,” the 90-year-old royal said, addressing the crowd. “However, there is an even more powerful message to be seen and experienced as the Baton passes from hand to hand, from seashore to mountaintop, through cities, towns, and villages. It is the message of a peace-building Commonwealth.”
The Queen hands the Baton to @AnnaMeares who takes it out of Buckingham Palace, passing it onto @v_pendleton for the relay. #gc2018pic.twitter.com/pL1ylNfqKa
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) March 13, 2017
The baton will travel to all continents and visit all 70 countries in the Commonwealth. It will be carried by thousands of different people from different countries and backgrounds.
The Commonwealth Games will be held on the Gold Coast in 2018.
The Queen is handed the message she has written and proceeds to put it into the #GC2018 Baton, which will not be read until the ceremony. pic.twitter.com/JX0FgjP47S
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) March 13, 2017
Singer Cody Simpson, who was born on the Gold Coast, performed the song “I Still Call Australia Home” for the ceremony.
The Queen handed off the baton to Australian cyclist Anna Meares to start its 388-day journey.
Cody Simpson performs at Buckingham Palace. #GC2018https://t.co/YLlE8ZEjDy
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) March 13, 2017
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Later on Monday, the Queen will attend the Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey alongside her husband, Prince Philip, her son, Prince Charles, and her grandson, Prince Harry.
For more from the royals, watch the clip below!