Queen Elizabeth Cancels Meeting to Rest Following a 'Full Day' Appointing a New Prime Minister

"Her Majesty has this afternoon accepted doctors' advice to rest," Buckingham Palace said in a statement

Queen Elizabeth is taking it easy after a busy day.

After the 96-year-old monarch appointed Liz Truss as the new prime minister of the United Kingdom at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on Tuesday, Buckingham Palace announced Wednesday that the Queen would not preside over a scheduled Privy Council meeting so she could rest.

"After a full day yesterday, Her Majesty has this afternoon accepted doctors' advice to rest," the palace said in a statement. "This means that the Privy Council meeting that had been due to take place this evening will be rearranged."

The Queen is understood to be at Balmoral Castle and not requiring a hospital visit.

Queen Elizabeth II waits in the Drawing Room before receiving newly elected leader of the Conservative party Liz Truss at Balmoral Castle
Queen Elizabeth on her final engagement - September 2022. Jane Barlow - WPA Pool/Getty Images

On Tuesday, the Queen welcomed Conservative Party leader Truss to her retreat in the Scottish Highlands and bid outgoing Prime Minister Boris Johnson a formal farewell.

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Truss, 47, became the third and youngest woman to be elected the U.K.'s prime minister — and the first not to formally meet the Queen in England after election in the royal's 70-year reign. The monarch has been experiencing episodic mobility issues, and a source tells PEOPLE that the decision was made to host Tuesday's audiences at Balmoral to provide certainty for schedules.

In the first photos of the Queen since she traveled to Scotland in July to spend the late summer months, she smiled near a crackling fire in the Drawing Room of Balmoral Castle holding a walking cane and her go-to black handbag.

Queen Elizabeth II waits in the Drawing Room before receiving newly elected leader of the Conservative party Liz Truss at Balmoral Castle for an audience where she will be invited to become Prime Minister and form a new government on September 6, 2022 in Aberdeen, Scotland. The Queen broke with the tradition of meeting the new prime minister and Buckingham Palace, after needing to remain at Balmoral Castle due to mobility issues
Queen Elizabeth on Sept. 6, 2022 at Balmoral Castle. Jane Barlow - WPA Pool/Getty

Queen Elizabeth has been using a cane regularly since October. The same month, she canceled a scheduled trip to Northern Ireland under medical advice from her doctors and spent a night in the hospital on Oct. 20.

The Queen also decided not to appear at the Nov. 14 Remembrance Day ceremony due to a sprained back and opted not to celebrate a traditional Christmas with the royal family at Sandringham, partially due to the uptick in COVID-19 cases around the holidays.

On Feb. 20, the palace announced that Queen Elizabeth had tested positive for COVID-19. "Her Majesty is experiencing mild cold-like symptoms but expects to continue light duties at Windsor over the coming week," the palace said.

LONDON, ENGLAND - JUNE 05: Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Queen Elizabeth II, Prince George of Cambridge, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Princess Charlotte of Cambridge, Prince Louis of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge stand on a balcony during the Platinum Jubilee Pageant on June 05, 2022 in London, England. The Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II is being celebrated from June 2 to June 5, 2022, in the UK and Commonwealth to mark the 70th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II on 6 February 1952. (Photo by Hannah McKay - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Prince Charles and Queen Elizabeth in June 2022. Hannah McKay/getty

The monarch made three appearances for her Platinum Jubilee weekend in June but did skip a few events.

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Her last public outing was in July, when she stepped out with daughter Princess Anne to open the new 28-bed Thames Hospice building. There, the Queen animatedly chatted with patient Pat White, also speaking with staff and volunteers during a tour.

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