Queen attends great-grandchildren’s joint christening despite health concerns

The Queen has attended what is believed to be the Royal family's first double christening, despite recent concerns for her health.

The 95-year-old monarch joined close family and friends for the christening of two of her great-grandsons as Princess Eugenie and Zara Tindall held a joint service for their first-born sons August and Lucas.

The Queen was said to have been determined to attend the ceremony despite a back sprain which saw her forced to pull out of a Remembrance Sunday event last weekend.

She is very fond of her granddaughters and is understood to have not wanted to let illness stop her attending.

She was photographed wearing a green hat and matching jacket as she was driven from the service at the All Saints Chapel in Great Windsor Park, Berkshire on Sunday afternoon.

The chapel is on a private road just a stone’s throw from the Royal Lodge, the residence Prince Andrew shares with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson.

It is believed that the private ceremony for August Brooksbank and Lucas Tindall is the first time that two royal babies have been baptised together.

Princess Eugenie, 31, and her husband Jack Brooksbank were due to christen their nine-month old son August back in July, but the event at the All Saints chapel was cancelled due to a Covid scare. He is the Duke and Duchess of York’s first grandchild.

Mike and Zara Tindall’s son Lucas was born in March. He is their third child and their first son.

The second cousins share the same middle name, Philip, in tribute to their late great-grandfather the Duke of Edinburgh.

Peter Phillips was pictured for the first time alongside female friend Lindsay Wallace, who was sitting beside him in the front seat of his Range Rover as he drove to the chapel.

Ms Wallace, the daughter of an oil tycoon and close friend of his sister Zara, after the pair attended private school Gordonstoun together.

Mr Phillips, 44, who separated from his wife Autumn in 2019, also attended the same boarding school but is a few years older.

Prince Harry’s ex-girlfriend Cressida Bonas and her husband Harry Wentworth-Stanley were also among the guests.

It is thought that holy water from the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall’s trip to Jordan last week was used during the ceremony.

The Prince flew back to Britain with a “few dozen” bottles of the water from the site where Christians believe Jesus was baptised for future royal christenings.

The Queen’s attendance comes just days after she returned to official duties after a period of rest. She welcomed the Chief of the Defence Staff, General Sir Nick Carter, at Windsor last week.

Canon Martin Poll, chaplain to Great Windsor Park, is understood to have held the ceremony in the Grade II listed church.