Is anyone else still a bit surprised that two royal grandchildren got baptized/christened over the weekend with very little fanfare? The palace only announced the baptisms last Friday, and everything was conducted on Sunday, at a chapel on the Windsor Castle complex. The big issue was whether Queen Elizabeth would attend the actual christenings at the chapel, especially given her struggling health these days. Zara and Mike Tindall’s son Lucas and Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank’s son August were the ones getting christened. There were no photographers allowed on the Windsor Castle property, and there was only one sighting of the Queen in the car, where she was apparently driven to the chapel. She allegedly attended a post-christening family gathering at Royal Lodge as well, which is the residence of Prince Andrew.
The Queen has attended a double royal christening following recent health concerns that saw her withdraw a number of official engagements earlier this month.
A joint baptism, hosted by mothers Princess Eugenie and Zara Tindall, took place on Sunday evening at the Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park, Berkshire. Eugenie’s son, August, was christened alongside Mike and Zara Tindall’s son, Lucas Philip.
The party was made up of immediate members of the family and close friends. Other attendees include the Duke of York and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. It comes after days after the Queen was seen at her first official engagement since missing the Remembrance Sunday service at the Cenotaph because of a sprained back.
It’s clear that the Queen’s courtiers are tightly controlling images and information around the Queen and her health. I doubt the Queen was hearty and hale enough to move around two different locations (the chapel and Royal Lodge) in one day, even if everything involved just family members. I also find it suspicious that William didn’t throw a tantrum about how there was no media and no announcements about godparents. I thought that was his big beef with Meghan and Harry, hm?
Meanwhile, I feel like Eugenie and Jack were roped into christening August this weekend partly against their will. Jack’s father George Brooksbank passed away last week after a weeks-long hospitalization with Covid last year. They should have been spending time mourning with Jack’s extended family, not participating in the palace’s charade about the Queen’s health.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, WENN and social media.
So it is possible to exclude photographers & reporters from baptisms and maintain the royal family’s privacy except when it comes to the Sussexes? Interesting that.
AND not make the names of God Parents public it seems. Hmmm… imagine that.
One of whom appears to be Cessida B, whom Eugenie originally set up with Harry. Note none of the gossips are running with that.
There were photographers outside the private entrance to the Royal Lodge grounds. The Queen was filmed leaving at around 4.30 pm.
Other guests were filmed too. Royal Lodge is inside Windsor Great Park which is open to the public from 7 am every day. The famous Long Walk connects Windsor Castle and Royal Lodge.
Yes it is absolutely possible if you are not a working royal. Has been that way for a while. Now that Harry no longer is, will be fine for him as well.
That’s very sad about Jack’s dad, may he RIP. Agreed that this seems rushed and not the best timing for Jack’s family.
This is such a weird family. They’re rich and healthy and cowardly (don’t step out on their own to earn a living or make a difference to the world, don’t stand up for Meghan), but I pity them somehow.
Or they scheduled it in a hurry a couple weeks ago, in the hopes his father would be able to attend.
That’s what I bet happened.
Yeah I kind of suspect that this might have been Zara and Mikes little one’s christening day, and with Jack’s father’s health, they decided to make it a double, in the hope that he could attend. They probably then decided to go ahead with it anyway.
While the royals are shady as hell, I don’t think there was much more to this.
The Tindalls would not normally use Windsor for a Christening. Their daughters were Christened at their parish church in Gloucestershire.
my guess it was scheduled around the Queen’s health, including the location .
I agree. Covid has changed a lot of schedules too. Moving things up, back, canceling altogether. It’s just an uncertain time.
In a lot of Christian sects, babies are baptized asap. My siblings and I were all baptized within a month of our births; nine months is not too fast. I also agree that they were probably hoping that his dad could be there.
Fair enough. Just seems that if the dad’s health was a factor in the planning, the Christening could have happened earlier without River Jordan water (so he would make it for sure) rather than wait for River Jordan water and risk him not being there. I don’t think it’s an awful massive conspiracy, just that I wonder if Jack had room to say “hey, can we pull out and just let Zara’s child get Christened this weekend?” And this is officially the longest I’ve thought about the Brooksbanks, wedding and baby’s birth included.
Oof. I wondered why Jack looked so unhappy in the shots of him and Eugenie arriving/leaving for the christening.
Jack is probably pissed at the family. They may have wanted August to be christened months ago when his father could attend, but the Firm likely pushed it further down the road chirping about the Queen’s health……
Yes, and if so who can blame him. Unfortunately he married into a family where he doesn’t have any control over the mundane decisions we take for granted and everything is propaganda for the firm and its leader.
Poor Jack. I can’t imagine that was anything more than bittersweet at best.
Why didn’t they also throw Bea’s daughter in to the mix? Or is she hoping for a separate, PR-hyped christening in a few weeks to tamp down any Andrew legal stories?
I wondered about that as well. Especially as we’re told THE QUEEN IS LANQUISHING! HER HEALTH! IT COULD BE HER LAST CHRISTENING!!
But I think you’re right. Bea, more than Euge, reeeeeally wanted to be a “working” royal. I do think she’d like the spotlight, WITH pics, and considering what’s coming out about Pedo INSISTING he’s going to “honor” his fellow soldiers at next year’s Falkland’s anniversary services, I’d bet they are “holding” Sienna’s christening until then (complete with pics) to temper that fire storm.
‘FBI, what FBI? We’re celebrating a Royal Christening at Christmas’!
Maxwell’s trial started last week so it seems like they might be keeping Bea in the wings in case they need to splash out some good PR.
Agreed. There is stuff going on about her and her dad wanting the spotlight.
If the QE is in such poor health, I doubt Beatrice would personally delay the christening for PR. She may have wanted to be a working royal, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t love her grandmother more than the spotlight. But I can see her parents manipulating her to their advantage.
It must be tough to lose a parent just when you become a new parent. I really do feel for Jack in that respect.
My father-in-law died when our son was about 6 weeks old. It is hard, my husband was grieving his dad as we were adjusting to a new baby. It was a real mix of happy and sad. I’m so glad that he got to meet our baby, though, and we have a lovely picture of Grandpa holding him at Thanksgiving (he was born at the end of October and FIL died in January.) I hope that Jack’s father was well enough to spend some time with them and the baby, and that those memories bring joy in a time of sadness.
My dad died unexpectedly when my firstborn was 11 months. My hubby is military so we weren’t stationed nearby. I treasure the few photos we have of them together.
That news about George Brooksbank’s death is especially poignant, and proves once again that the BRF and their Firm of Clowns lack all humanity. This is *all* about QE, another attempt to show she’s healthy enough — nothing to see here.
Beatrice and Zara are non-working and non-royal respectively. There are not the same expectations for photos and announcements as with working members of the Royal Family. I agree that the Palace used the occasion to show the Queen out and about but William would have no interest in the godparents in these children. They’re not royal and low down the line of succession plus such information is not going to get the clicks and revenue that the press would want. As for Jack and Eugenie being made to have the christening so soon after their father’s death. Should we surprised by the insensitivity of the Windsors? This was about showing the Queen to be healthy and everything else takes a back seat.
They are both royal but non working.
Yes. They are both members of the royal family, both grandchildren of the Queen. Beatrice is HRH because she is born through the male line. Princess Anne’s children have no title because their father has no title. Beatrice’s children and Eugenie’s have no titles. Titles make no difference to their places in the line of succession. Archie and Lili take precedence over Prince Andrew and his children and grandchildren.
I said this on the other story, but they’ll probably wait to drop photos until the the documentary publishes later today/tomorrow in a n effort to reclaim the front page. How awful for Jack.
I’d be surprised if any photos of these christenings are released to public just because of their status in the family. Maybe Eugenie might post something at some point but probably not until the mourning period is over.
The Tindalls don’t really release pics (I do think they release a list of godparents though) so I’m not expecting anything from them. I can see some pics from Eugenie after, like you said, the mourning period is over.
The Tindalls sold pics, interviews about, and stories of their first two children to HELLO!
I’m not expecting freebies on their SM accounts.
@nota: huh. I missed that. Thanks for letting me know.
I don’t think they officially released the godparents for Lena, i think someone took a picture of the christening program and it had them listed or something similar.
I fear Queen Elizabeth II will die an angry woman. Bitter, disappointed, dour.
For someone on the way to what’s supposed to be a happy occasion, she looks mighty unhappy. I know she has RBF, but damn! That is one Bitter Betty!
I doubt any of them are as miserable as our imaginations have made them out to be.
I don’t think so. She’ll die knowing she’s fulfilled the duty she pledged to do 75-ish years ago. As for the expression on her face, that’s what happens when you’re 95. Maybe we’re so used to Botox that we don’t recognize what a face looks like when it sags naturally.
All Liz has done for the British people is continue the monarchy. Her particular brand of “service” seems to consist of being seen, ribbon cutting, giving awards, entertaining VIPs, etc. Maybe some people consider that spending her life in service to her peeps, but I honestly don’t. She supposedly cares so much about the Commonwealth, but the only family member to raise money/awareness for poorer countries need if Covid vaccines is…wait for it…Harry & Meghan. Liz just wants to pretend she still rules an empire.
@BlueToile
That’s not true. Britain is one of the biggest suppliers of vaccines to Nigeria which is a commonwealth country.
The queen does not look well even when considering she is 95.
Poor Jack. That is really bad timing for him. I understand the royal machine at work would make it difficult to reschedule but I hope the royal family acknowledged his loss, After all, they didn’t bother acknowledging Diana’s passing the same day.
No photos of the Cambridges coming and going? How would they sneak in unseen but even the Queen gets papped? I don’t think they were there, shades of Jame’s Middleton’s wedding.
Peter’s new girlfriend is beautiful. Kate might have a problem with her.
I don’t think they were there either. Others, including the Queen, got photographed.
About Diana’s passing: I’ve heard/read before that they didn’t respond the same day because William and Harry happened to be visiting QE and Prince Philip at the time, and so their priority was to comfort and protect the boys rather than make public statements. Is that version just the royal apologists making excuses for the RF’s insensitivity?
And LOL about Kate’s jealousy, I could see her as the evil queen in Snow White! Maybe that’s the untold “Megxit” (I use that term sarcastically!) story: Kate ordered a hunter to bring her Meghan’s heart in a box, but he took pity on her and Harry and let them escape.
I’ve heard that the silence on the day of Diana’s death and the other days that followed was because the Queen didn’t think she needed to give a response because Diana was no longer a royal. I tend to believe this story.
The photographers caught photos of the people driving in to Royal Lodge and there are no photos of the Cambridges. So either they didn’t attend the reception of they didn’t go at all. The media is ready to cover for William right now so it’s quite likely they didn’t go. They haven’t attended every single cousin christening so missing a few wouldn’t be that unusual. And from the royal variety photos it’s obvious they don’t want to attend events together any more than they have to.
Considering William is sniffing around RL and hoping to claim it as his own, I can’t imagine Andrew and family would be especially looking forward to his presence.
Does this count as work for K&W?
Sorry to the Brooksbanks for their loss. Explains why Jack was so solemn yesterday in pictures.
My condolences to Jack and the Brookbanks. The Windsors have no regards to any married in’s feelings. This was a command performance for PR. SMH.
Or as I wrote above, they scheduled this in a hurry in the hopes Jack’s dad would live long enough to attend. It may have been Zara’s date to start, then Eugenie/Jack asked to tag along to be able to christen their son before his grandfather passed.
The Queen didn’t show up to Louis or Archie’s christening. The last great grandchild’s christening she showed up for was Charlotte, I believe. I think this was to cheer her up with her health being an issue and the death of Prince Phillip not long ago. I’m sure it was nice and did that. My guess is Eugenie and Jack were fine with it. I have a picture in my head of the Queen being very adamant about going to this to all the naysayers who thought she wasn’t well enough.
Now as far as the lack of publicity or pomp and circumstance, keep in mind neither Zara nor Eugenie are senior royals, Zara doesn’t even have a title. Plus, does anyone remember her other two children’s christening? Some of the publicity is based on how popular they are, and these two just aren’t. On top of all of that, you have Covid, Queen’s health, the crappy but justified negative publicity about Andrew, who would most definitely be there as it’s his grandson, and even the Sussex’s negative royal publicity to some extent, and I think most people would say a quiet ceremony is more appropriate. Plus there are lots of things to complain about with the British royal family, this just seems kind of nice.
The Queen attended Lena Tindall’s christening.
Oh, that is heartbreaking for Jack.
So the royals CAN do christenings/baptisms with very little fuss UNLESS they are Lilibet. Good to know. Disgusted with this family. Don’t they see how they embarrass themselves? Totally CLASSLESS.