Previously unseen picture of Queen Elizabeth shared in touching tribute as Royal Family mark anniversary of late monarch’s passing

The Royal Family have shared a touching and never-before-seen photo of the late Queen on social media as it marks the first anniversary of her passing.

The image of Queen Elizabeth was taken at Buckingham Palace when she was just 42 in October 1968 by Cecil Beaton.

A number of images from the shoot have already been shared, but the photograph, which shows the Queen in a lilac dress and beaming for the camera, is said to be new.

The image was shared on the Royal Family’s official social media page today, with the words: ‘In loving and eternal memory’.

The caption continues: “Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022.”

The image was shared on the Royal Family’s official social media page today, with the words: ‘In loving and eternal memory’.

An image from the set is on display at the National Portrait Gallery and shows the smiling Queen.

The photographs show the late monarch wearing the Cambridge pearl pendant brooch.

The historic brooch, more than 140 years old, originally belonged to Princess Augusta of Hesse-Kassel, wife of Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge, before being passed on to Queen Elizabeth by her grandmother.

Queen Elizabeth wore this piece for a portrait on her 50th birthday at Windsor Castle on April 21, 1976 and, earlier, for a Christmas broadcast in 1971.

The monarch also wore the brooch in 2019 at a reception at Buckingham Palace to mark the work of the Queen’s Trust and when welcoming the Peruvian ambassador to the palace in 2018.

The King today paid a moving tribute to his beloved mother as the nation marks the first anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s death.

In an unprecedented break with tradition, signifying how he was touched by the grief of the country following his death but also proud of a remarkable life of public service, His Majesty recalled “the long life of his mother, her dedicated service and all that she meant to so many people”. We’.

Charles, 74, originally planned only to mark his mother’s death – and his own grief-stricken accession – in “quiet contemplation” at his home in Scotland.

In doing so, it would follow the same pattern Queen Elizabeth chose to adopt for 70 years, marking the death of her father, King George VI, at Sandringham in Norfolk, away from the public eye.

But in recent weeks he has begun to change his mind, having been so deeply touched by the global outpouring of grief following the death of his mother on September 8 last year.

Indeed the Mail can reveal that the King and Queen Camilla chose last night not to return to their own home at Birkhall on the Balmoral estate as planned, but to stay at the very castle where Elizabeth died at the age of 96 years old, surrounded by the glory of the Scottish Highlands that she adored.

They will remain there today, comforted by some of those closest to Her late Majesty, also spending the night there, before returning to their neighboring estate. A source said: “I think it will be heartwarming to be surrounded by so many familiar things.”

The King today paid a moving tribute to his beloved mother as the nation marks the first anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s death.

Meanwhile, the Prince and Princess of Wales will mark the first anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s death with a small private service in Wales. William and Kate will visit St Davids Cathedral in St Davids, Britain’s smallest town in Pembrokeshire, on Friday. They will also meet members of the local community in the adjacent cloister, including locals who met Elizabeth II during her visits to St Davids.

St Davids has been a place of pilgrimage and worship for over 1,400 years, ever since St David – the patron saint of Wales – moved there with his monastic community in the 6th century.

Since the Reformation, one of the choir stalls has belonged to the Crown and is known as the Sovereign’s Stall. This makes St Davids the only cathedral in the UK where the sovereign has a special stand in the choir among the members of the chapter, the governing body of the cathedral.

Elizabeth II was the first monarch to visit St Davids Cathedral since the Reformation when she arrived at the site with her husband, the late Duke of Edinburgh, during a royal tour of Wales in August 1955 after his coronation.

In his message, Charles said: “On the first anniversary of the death of Her late Majesty and my accession, we remember with great affection her long life, her dedicated service and all that she represented for many of us.

“I am also deeply grateful for the love and support that has been shown to my wife and I over this year as we do our utmost to serve you all.”

It was signed Charles R and accompanied by a portrait chosen by the King which has never been made public before. The photograph was taken at Buckingham Palace on October 16, 1968, as part of an official sitting given to the legendary Cecil Beaton – the last he ever undertook with the late Her Majesty before his death.

It was exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery the following month, but has not yet been released to the public.

The king apparently chose this photograph because of the “charming” – and slightly mischievous – gaze of his mother, who was 42 at the time.