The Palace Releases Adorable Video of the Queen as a Child for Her Birthday

It's Queen Elizabeth II's 94th birthday, and the Royal Family has shared a compilation of private videos from when the monarch was very young.

london, united kingdom february 19 embargoed for publication in uk newspapers until 24 hours after create date and time queen elizabeth ii opens the new premises of the royal national ent and eastman dental hospitals on february 19, 2020 in london, england the new premises brings the royal national throat, nose and ear hospital and the eastman dental hospital, which are part of uclh university college london hospitals nhs foundation trust, together under one roof photo by max mumbyindigogetty images
(Image credit: Max Mumby/Indigo)
  • It's Queen Elizabeth II's 94th birthday today (impressive!), and in honor of that, the Royal Family Instagram account has shared a compilation of private videos from when the monarch was very young.
  • The video shows the Queen and sister Margaret horsing around—literally, riding horses and playing with dogs—and exploring and dancing. It's adorable.
  • The Queen's traditional Trooping the Colour celebration in June has been cancelled, but you can look through old ceremony photos here.

Happy birthday Your Majesty! The 94-year-old Queen Elizabeth II is self-isolating with Prince Philip on her birthday, instead of the traditional pomp and circumstance. But never fear: The Royal Family Instagram account has truly blessed us with throwback Queen content instead. From the Royal Collection Trust come private videos (some of which look like they might have been casually filmed by family members) of the Queen and her sister Princess Margaret at a very young age. Like, babies. And it's the cutest thing ever. 

Ugh, this video has absolutely everything. The Queen as a baby in her stroller, trailing a toy behind her. The animal-lover riding a horse (she's loved riding and racing her entire life), playing with the family dogs, and basically being Snow White with a bird crawling up her shoulder. She and her sister Margaret—who look nearly like twins—horsing around, exploring, and gardening together. The two girls with their mother dancing—People calls it a reel—on the deck of the Royal Yacht Britannia.

Seriously, just watch (they look so happy and relaxed!). It's a totally different look at the usually buttoned-up monarch:

We also got a fabulous still photo from the Royal Collection Trust, along with some details about her early love for all things equestrian:

See more

Meanwhile, the well wishes for the Queen have been pouring in, including from Kate Middleton and Prince William.

I think my favorite post might be the Royal Family sharing a recipe for (absolutely adorable) cupcakes on Twitter though:

See more

Are they the Queen's faves?? Tell me! (Also, anyone, please bake them for me?)

For more stories like this, including celebrity news, beauty and fashion advice, savvy political commentary, and fascinating features, sign up for the Marie Claire newsletter.

SUBSCRIBE HERE

RELATED STORIES
Katherine J. Igoe
Contributor

Katherine’s a Boston-based contributor at Marie Claire who covers fashion, culture, and lifestyle—from “Clueless” to Everlane to news about Lizzo. She’s been a freelancer for 11 years and has had roles with Cosmopolitan and Bustle, with bylines in Parents, Seventeen, and elsewhere. It’s “I go to dinner,” not “Her huge ego,” but she responds to both.