Queen heartbreak: Monarch shares 'great sadness' as she releases poignant birthday message.
The Queen issued a sombre thank you message to people across the world who showed their love for Prince Philip
and support to the Royal Family in the wake of the Duke of Edinburgh's death.
In her statement, the grieving monarch openly spoke about the sadness she and her family have been left with after the passing of her husband.
The Queen's message, shared on Twitter by Buckingham Palace, read:
The Queen's message comes on her 95th birthday, which she is spending privately in Windsor.
On her first birthday without Prince Philip, the monarch is expected to be visited by a few members of her family.
Others, including Kate and Prince William, are said to have scheduled calls with the sovereign to mark the day.
The Queen may also decide to head to Frogmore and walk her two corgis in one of her favourite parts of the Windsor estate.
As the Royal Family continues its period of mourning until Thursday,
the Queen's birthday hasn't been marked publicly as it would normally happen.
The Daily Mail reported earlier this week plans to release a new portrait of the sovereign today were scrapped in the wake of Prince Philip's death.
Similarly, the traditional gun salute held at Hyde Park and the Tower of London on April 21 every year did not go ahead.
Last year, as the country was in the midst of the first national lockdown, the monarch also asked for her birthday not to be marked by the gun salute.
The only official message issued today to mark the Queen's birthday came from the Royal Family's official Twitter account.
The brief statement read:
As the sovereign copes with the loss of her husband of 73 years,
prominent female members of the Royal Family have reportedly devised a plan not to leave her alone.
A source told the Mirror: "The Queen will not be alone.
"She will have others who care about her deeply and want to be there to support her in her most pressing hour.
"In typical fashion, the Queen has insisted she is coping and despite the suggestion she had prepared herself for this day to come,
everyone is well aware there is nothing like the experience when it comes."
This plan reportedly sees royals taking up a rota to make sure the Queen is being visited by her loved ones on a regular basis.
Sophie, who royal commentators and insiders believe to be one of the Queen's favourites,
is said to have planned several visits in the coming days with her children Lady Louise and James, Viscount Severn.
Similarly, the Queen's daughter Princess Anne is set to travel from Gatcombe Park to keep an eye on her mother.