The royal family have shared a moving tribute to Queen Elizabeth II on what would have been her 97th birthday.

Taking to social media, the official Royal Family Instagram account (used to share updates on everyone from King Charles III to the Waleses and the new Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh), posted a picture of the former Queen looking smiley in a pale blue hat, holding a bunch of flowers.

Encouraging the account’s 12.9 million followers to learn more about Her Majesty on this special day, an accompanying caption reads: “Today we remember the incredible life and legacy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, on what would have been her 97th birthday.

“When Her Majesty was born in April 1926, Princess Elizabeth and her family did not expect that she would one day become Queen. Following the abdication of her uncle King Edward VIII in 1936, her father acceded to the throne.”

It added that when King George VI died in the February of 1952, the then-Princess Elizabeth was crowned Queen Elizabeth II, at the mere age of 25. “Her Majesty went on to be Britain’s longest reigning Monarch – the only one in history to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee,” the wording continues, before adding that those interested can “find out more about Queen Elizabeth II’s life and legacy on our website”.

Quick to flood the comments with well wishes, one royal fan wrote, “Happy heavenly birthday, Her Majesty!! You are very missed all around the world!!” while another added that they were grateful to have had Queen Elizabeth II around for her 96 years. “Happy heavenly birthday Queen Elizabeth II,” they wrote. “May she rest in peace, I’m glad we got to witness her as long as we did.”

A third added, “We will always remember her! 💜😢”