Buckingham Palace officials have dismissed speculation about the welfare of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip. Unsubstantiated theories went viral online after reports royal staff were summoned to London overnight.
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"There is no cause for alarm" over the health of Queen Elizabeth II, 91, and her husband Philip, 95, sources at Buckingham Palace told news agencies on Thursday.
Reporters and television crews had been gathering outside the royals' London residence since dawn after rumors about a possible announcement spread on social media.
An official quoted by The Associated Press confirmed that royal household staff had been summoned, but added that such meetings were called from time to time.
Speculation about a royal death had been rife on social media after a report by British newspaper "Daily Mail" about an emergency gathering called by the queen's senior aides at Buckingham Palace in the early hours of the morning.
The queen, who is the world's longest-reigning monarch, celebrated her 91st birthday last month. She fell ill at the end of last year with a heavy cold that forced her to miss a traditional Christmas church service for the first time in decades. However, she resumed many of her normal duties in recent months.
On Wednesday, she met with British Prime Minister Theresa May to mark the dissolution of parliament ahead of the June general election. Philip, who turns 96 in June, also appeared to be in good health as he opened a new stand at Lord's cricket ground.
Queen Elizabeth reaches Sapphire Jubilee
Victoria was Queen of England for 63 years and 216 days. Queen Elizabeth has passed her up in 2015 and has now gone on to reach a Sapphire Jubilee, marking 65 years on the throne.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/R. Michael
The record-setting monarch
Queen Elizabeth became Britain's monarch on February 6, 1952, the day her father, King George VI, died. Since then she has ruled over the United Kingdom, and has been head of the Commonwealth and the Church of England. Sixty-five years later, the 90-year-old queen makes history by becoming the first British monarch to celebrate a Sapphire Jubilee.
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Victoria's heyday
Queen Victoria (1819-1901) had previously held the record for the longest time on the throne. She became Queen in 1837 and held the office until her death: 63 years and seven months. Spanning several generations, her reign impacted an entire epoch, which was named after her. During the Victorian Era, Britain experienced economic growth and its empire reached the climax of its power.
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The world's oldest monarch
Queen Elizabeth has already been the oldest monarch in British history since December 20, 2007. This was the first of Victoria's records broken by Elizabeth. Victoria was 81 years, seven months and 29 days old when she died. Queen Elizabeth turned 90 on April 21, 2016. She also became the oldest monarch in the world when Abdullah of Saudi Arabia passed away on January 23, 2015.
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Only one Empress of India
Queen Victoria still has one up on Elizabeth, however. On January 1, 1877, she became the first British monarch to hold the title Empress of India, which incorporated India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar at the time. In 1947, India and Pakistan gained their independence from Britain.
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The royal couple
Queen Victoria married her cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, in 1840. They had nine children together. When Albert died in December 1861 at the young age of 42, Victoria fell into depression and largely withdrew from public life.
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The Queen in Germany
Queen Elizabeth has visited Germany seven times during her reign. She came for the first time in May 1965. She is pictured here in Bonn with Heinrich Lübke, who was Germany's 70-year-old president at the time. During that first visit, the Queen spent 11 days touring Germany, including stops in the capital, Bonn, divided Berlin, and 16 additional cities.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Rehm
Elizabeth and the Germans
In June 2015, the Queen visited Germany once again. She's pictured here with her husband, Prince Philip, German President Joachim Gauck and his wife, Daniela Schadt, in front of the presidential residence in Berlin. Queen Elizabeth also went to Frankfurt and paid a visit to the site of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, which was liberated by British soldiers at the end of World War II.
Image: Getty Images/S. Gallup
Another record awaits
Queen Elizabeth is currently the oldest monarch in the world and now the longest reigning in Britain. But she's not the longest reigning royal in recorded history. That title is held by former King of Swaziland Sobhuza II, who spent 82 years on the throne, from December 10, 1899 to August 21, 1982.
