Smiling Queen takes part in third event during royal week in Scotland

The monarch watched the Reddendo parade at the Palace of Holyroodhouse.

The Queen smiled and waved as she took in the ceremony at the Palace of Holyroodhouse (Jane Barlow/PA)

The Queen has taken part in her third event in four days during her visit to Scotland.

The monarch, 96, looked on as more than 300 officers and archers from the Queen’s Body Guard for Scotland took part in the Reddendo parade.

Dressed in a dusky blue, Angela Kelly outfit with matching hat, the Queen smiled and waved as she emerged from the Palace of Holyroodhouse, her official residence in Edinburgh.

She then watched the ceremony from a chair while the Prince of Wales, known in Scotland as the Duke of Rothesay, greeted members of the parade, shaking hands with some of the archers.

Members of the Royal Company of Archers taking part in the Reddendo ceremony. (Jane Barlow/PA)

The Royal Company of Archers acts as the sovereign’s ceremonial Body Guard for Scotland – a role first created in 1822 during a visit to Scotland by King George IV.

As Princess Elizabeth, the Queen first became acquainted with the Royal Company during a visit to Scotland with her father,  King George VI in 1937, when he inspected them at the Palace of Holyroodhouse.

During today’s ceremony, members of the Royal Company took off their hats and performed three cheers for the Queen.