Meghan Marklemade herRoyal Ascot debutlast year alongside new husbandPrince Harryjust weeks after their royal wedding, but she was missing from the 2019 festivities.
Several members of the royal family joinedQueen Elizabethfor the first day of the iconic five-day horse race event on Tuesday, includingKate Middleton,Prince William,Prince CharlesandCamilla, Duchess of Cornwall. Princess Eugenie,Princess BeatriceandZara Tindallwere also in attendance — with blue being the trendy color for the women to wear.
“Meghan is on maternity leave, but Trooping is a family occasion,” a source recently told PEOPLE. “You don’t skip the Queen’s birthday. She’s the Queen!”
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry.Tim Rooke/Shutterstock
Kate Middleton and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.Press Association via AP
Queen Elizabeth.PA Images/Sipa
It’s possible that royal fans will seePrince Harry— dressed to the nines in a suit and top hat — attend the Royal Ascot without his wife later this week.
Press Association via AP
After their carriage ride,Prince Charlesand Camilla joined the couple for an animated chat. Charles laughed heartily with his new daughter-in-law, before they joined the Queen in the royal box just in time to watch the first race.
DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP/Getty Images
SplashNews.com
Royal Ascot came to be soon after 1711, when Queen Anne rode out from Windsor Castle to the field where the race now takes place, and said, “This would be a fine place for a race,” according to Slot. The first event was held later that year, andhas continued since.
The Queen’s carriage leads the procession, with others following behind. Only invited guests of the Queen are granted seats in the carriages. It’s a formula that works: The royal procession “doesn’t change year to year,” Slot says. “It’s exactly the same.”
source: people.com
