Jane Barlow – WPA Pool/Getty Images
Queen Elizabeth II used a walking stick to support herself today as she formally invited Britain’s new prime minister, Liz Truss, to form a new government.
The use of a stick was not the only concession to the 96-year-old monarch’s “episodic mobility” problems; the ancient ceremony, known as “kissing of hands,” took place at the queen’s Scottish home of Balmoral, where she lives for the summer and early fall months. It was the first time in her 70-year reign that the ceremony has been conducted away from Buckingham Palace.
The queen had originally planned to travel to London for the ceremony; however, last week her office said she had decided to ask Truss to travel to Scotland instead. Outgoing PM Boris Johnson also made the trip north for a final audience with the queen in the drawing room of Balmoral, and to formally tender his resignation.