London - Britain's Queen Elizabeth
cancelled her annual garden parties and will leave London for
Windsor Castle earlier than planned because of the coronavirus
outbreak, Buckingham Palace said on Tuesday.
The 93-year-old monarch will carry out a number of small
duties at Buckingham Palace in the next few days before she
heads to Windsor, west of London, on Thursday - a week earlier
than scheduled.
She will remain there beyond the Easter period, the palace
said.
"In consultation with the Medical Household and government,
a number of public events with large numbers of people due to
have been attended by the queen, and other members of the royal
family, in the coming months will be cancelled or postponed,"
the palace said in a statement.
The decision comes a day after Britain ordered a shut down
of social life.
Among the cancelled royal events will be the annual Maundy
Service at Windsor next month and three garden parties that were
to be staged at Buckingham Palace in May.
Decisions on whether a planned state visit by the Emperor of
Japan should go ahead will be made later.