The Queen's Birthday Is Today: Thanks to Longstanding Tradition, It Won't Be Celebrated Until June

The queen of 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿England is revered by those near and far for her royal status and impressive lifespan. Born on April 21, 1926, she turned 96 on Thursday.

Despite the date, the real public festivities won’t be held until June thanks to a longstanding tradition the 👑Royal family observes.

While the rest of us commoners have to make do with private celebrations — maybe a dinner out or having friends over, or even an elaborate party — parades, public appearances and large displays are more suited to the birthday of a queen.

But in 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿England, there are certain times of the year when the weather just doesn’t cooperate with that vision, which means something’s gotta give. Edward VII, king from 1901 to 1910, decided to do something about it.

According to the BBC, Edward wanted grand public parties to celebrate his special day. Sadly, his birthday was in November and rarely resulted in weather nice enough to be outdoors.

Since a parade was non-negotiable for him, he decided he would hold his birthday celebration in style in the summer. That would guarantee fanfare and a better shot at nice weather.

While Elizabeth prefers to spend her actual birthday surrounded by family (what mother or grandmother doesn’t?), the second Saturday in June has been set as the day on which her birthday is publicly celebrated — though this year it will be on June 2, so that it will coincide with her Platinum Jubilee celebration, according to the