Queen Elizabeth, 94, Shares a Photo of Youngest Son Edward as She Celebrates His 57th Birthday
Queen Elizabeth II fondly celebrated her youngest son Prince Edward's 57th birthday with a heartwarming photo on social media. The Earl of Wessex has been happily married for 22 years and has two kids.
Yesterday, the Queen sweetly celebrated her youngest son Prince Edward as he turned 57. The Royal Family's official Instagram page shared a heartwarming photo of the Earl of Wessex to commemorate the day.
The portrait showed the celebrant with a wide grin as he looked into the distance. The earl wore a plaid button-down shirt underneath a green plaid jacket. The accompanying caption read, "Wishing The Earl of Wessex a very happy birthday today!"
Queen Elizabeth II during her visit to the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) at Porton Down science park on October 15, 2020 | Photo: Getty Images
Royal fans in the comments section sent their well-wishes to Prince Edward, thanking him for the excellent charity work he does. The youngest of the Queen's four kids, Edward, was born on March 10, 1964.
After dating for six years, Prince Edwards and Sophie announced their engagement in January 1999.
At the time, Her Majesty was 37, and his birth broke the record as the first of the Queen's kids to be born with Prince Philip present in the delivery room. The monarch had reportedly read about the importance of fathers' presence and wanted to try it.
Before becoming a full-time royal, Edward dabbled into arts and served as a production assistant at Andrew Lloyd Webber's Really Useful Theatre Company when he was 23. He also owned a production company, Ardent, which folded in 2011.
Before venturing into the showbiz business, Prince Edward served in the Royal Marines but quit after three years. While the 57-year-old keeps a low profile compared to his siblings, his love life has often made headlines.
The Earl of Wessex has been married to his wife, Sophie Rhys-Jones, for about 22 years. The duo first met at a Real Tennis Challenge event organized by Edward. She was in charge of handling the PR of the event.
After dating for six years, Prince Edwards and Sophie announced their engagement in January 1999 with the royal proposing with a custom Gerrard & Co diamond ring reportedly worth about $153,000 at the time.
In June 1999, the lovebirds walked down the aisle in St. George's Chapel Windsor in an intimate ceremony attended only by royals. The wedding was, however, watched by 200 million people.
On the wedding day, Edward was granted the title Earl of Wessex and his wife, the Countess of Wessex. Per reports, he was given an earl title, not a duke, despite being a male child of the reigning sovereign because he requested for it in particular.
Since becoming a full-time royal, Edward and his wife support the Queen with her various charities and organization. The duo is also doting parents of two, Lady Louise and Viscount Severn James.