The prayers of the nation are with the Queen, the archbishop of Canterbury has said, as Britain’s leaders sent messages of support to the monarch, who was put under medical supervision after doctors became worried about her health.
As her four children, Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward, gathered at Balmoral Castle to be with her, good wishes poured in.
“May God’s presence strengthen and comfort Her Majesty, her family, and those who are caring for her at Balmoral,” tweeted Justin Welby, the archbishop.
Buckingham Palace issued a statement at 12.32pm on Thursday saying doctors were concerned for the Queen’s health.
The palace said the head of state was comfortable and royal physicians had recommended she stayed under medical supervision as the future king, the Prince of Wales, and second in line to the throne, the Duke of Cambridge, cleared their diaries to dash to the Queen’s Scottish Highlands home.
Prince Harry, who was coincidentally visiting the UK from his home in the US, also rushed up to Balmoral to be with the Queen.
The UK’s leading political figures were quick to tweet about their concern.
Liz Truss, who became the prime minister after an audience with the Queen at Balmoral on Tuesday, was on the frontbench of the House of Commons in Westminster when she received the news about the Queen’s health.
“The whole country will be deeply concerned by the news from Buckingham Palace this lunchtime,” she tweeted, adding “my thoughts – and the thoughts of people across our United Kingdom – are with her Majesty the Queen and her family at this time.”
The whole country will be deeply concerned by the news from Buckingham Palace this lunchtime.
— Liz Truss (@trussliz) September 8, 2022
My thoughts - and the thoughts of people across our United Kingdom - are with Her Majesty The Queen and her family at this time.
The Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer, tweeted: “Along with the rest of the country, I am deeply worried by the news from Buckingham Palace this afternoon.
“My thoughts are with Her Majesty the Queen and her family at this time, and I join everyone across the United Kingdom in hoping for her recovery.”
Along with the rest of the country, I am deeply worried by the news from Buckingham Palace this afternoon.
— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) September 8, 2022
My thoughts are with Her Majesty The Queen and her family at this time, and I join everyone across the United Kingdom in hoping for her recovery.
The Queen looked bright but frail when she last met Truss on Tuesday to invite her to form a government following the formal resignation of Boris Johnson.
She had been suffering mobility problems and met them at Balmoral in a break with the traditional use of Buckingham Palace for such formalities.
In the last year, the 96-year-old has also been grieving the loss of her husband, Prince Philip, after 74 years of marriage.
Concerns about the Queen’s health emerged in October when she cancelled a trip to Northern Ireland. She missed the Easter church service after a Covid infection two months earlier was said to have left her exhausted.
She then missed a parade to celebrate her jubilee due to “discomfort” and Charles deputised for her at the opening of parliament in May.
A sombre mood descended on parliament on Thursday after the Commons Speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, interrupted a speech by the SNP Westminster leader, Ian Blackford, to break the news.
Moments earlier MPs were distracted by the appearance of the new chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster, Nadhim Zahawi, who had not been in the chamber for Truss’s speech.
He slipped into the chamber and inserted himself next to Truss to speak to her, handed the prime minister a note, and then slipped out again.
Hoyle said: “I know I speak on behalf of the entire house when I say that we send our best wishes to Her Majesty the Queen and that she and the royal family are in our thoughts and prayers at this moment.”
Resuming his speech, Blackford said he was “saddened” to hear the Queen was unwell while the first ministers of Wales and Scotland echoed that sentiment.
The Welsh first minister, Mark Drakeford, said he sent his “best wishes to Her Majesty and her family on behalf of the people of Wales”, while Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, did likewise.
The former prime ministers David Cameron and Tony Blair also expressed their deep concern, saying their thoughts and prayers were with the Queen.
