Although she hadn't used a computer until two years earlier, Queen Elizabeth II marked the 50th anniversary of her televised Christmas message with an unprecedented internet broadcast to subjects around the world on Tuesday.
Queen Elizabeth delivers her Christmas Day message from Buckingham Palace in London. The message was broadcast Tuesday on television and, for the first time, on the internet.
(Steve Parsons/Associated Press/PA)
The British monarch's 15-minute address appeared Tuesday on a new Royal Channel hosted by the video-sharing website YouTube, as part of an attempt to reach a larger audience with her Yuletide message.
Wearing the same three-stringed pearl necklace as she did in her first broadcast in 1957, the Queen paid praise to her country's soldiers fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq — sentiments that also hold meaning for Canadian troops overseas and their families at home.
"We have all been conscious of those who have given their lives, or who have been severely wounded, while serving with the armed forces in Iraq and Afghanistan," said the 81-year-old monarch, who is also head of Britain's armed forces.
"The dedication of the National Armed Forces Memorial was also an occasion to remember those who have suffered while serving in these and every other place of unrest since the end of the Second World War."
"For their families, Christmas will bring back sad memories, and I pray that all of you, who are missing those who are dear to you, will find strength and comfort in your families and friends."
The Queen also took the opportunity to address the plight of those "who feel cut off and disadvantaged; people who, for one reason or another, are not able to enjoy the full benefits of living in a civilized and law-abiding community."
"For these people, the modern world can seem a distant and hostile place. It is all too easy to turn a blind eye, to pass by on the other side, and leave it to experts and professionals," she said, as old and new footage of the Queen delivering her annual messages were spliced together.
"All the great religious teachings of the world press home the message that everyone has a responsibility to care for the vulnerable."
On Tuesday, the Queen attended a church service with family members at St. Mary Magdalene Church, near her country home in Sandringham, Norfolk.
Accompanied by granddaughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, daughters of her son Prince Andrew, the Queen was greeted by around 600 wellwishers before the service.
The monarch's Christmas address is a tradition that began with Elizabeth's grandfather, King George V, who delivered the first one in 1932.
With files from the Associated PressRelated
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