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Queen Elizabeth II

The Queen and members of the Royal Family meet and greet the crowds on The Mall

The Queen and members of the Royal Family greeted the crowd on The Mall today for the Patron’s Lunch.

Her Majesty and the Duke of Edinburgh arrived on The Mall in the so called ‘Queenmobile’ which is a open topped state car.

Among the royals on the street was 12-year-old Lady Louise Windsor, who made her first public walkabout today.

Lady Louise, and other members of the Royal Family greeted the crowd of 10,000 people who managed to purchase tickets for the country’s biggest street party.

Other members of Royal Family who braved the rain were the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Harry, The Duke of York and his daughters, Beatrice and Eugenie.

The Princess Royal and her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence also took to the streets to greet the crowds, alongside the Earl and Countess of Wessex.

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall led national celebrations elsewhere in the country. This morning they were in Gloucester.

Each guest attending the Patron’s Lunch received their own hamper before sitting down at the specially prepared tables that will line the Mall outside Buckingham Palace.

There are currently more than 600 bodies which have The Queen as their royal patron – and she has been patron of 433 of those since 1952, the year of her accession to the throne. All of these charities have been invited to the Patron’s Lunch today.

The rain didn’t keep the crowd away, as thousands of people picnicked on St James’s Park and Green Park where giant screens were erected.

The Lunch is the culmination of a weekend of national events marking The Queen’s official 90th birthday and honours the monarch’s lifetime dedication to service.

The weekend of official birthday began on Friday 10 June with a Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul’s Cathedral. 53 members of the Royal Family attended the service to pay tribute to Her majesty’s life.

Yesterday saw the annual Trooping the Colour ceremony take place on Horse Guards Parade in London. Otherwise know as The Queen’s Birthday Parade. Afterwards, the Royal Family took to the balcony of Buckingham Palace to watch an RAF flypast.

This was particularly significant as it was Princess Charlotte’s first appearance on the balcony.