London - Gun salutes rang out in London on Tuesday to mark Queen Elizabeth II's 89th birthday, as Britain's royals eagerly await the newest addition to the family.
A 41-gun salute was fired at midday in Hyde Park, with a 62-gun salute following from the Tower of London -- and it could happen all over again within days to celebrate the birth of Prince William and his wife Kate's second baby.
The queen's fifth great-grandchild, who will be born fourth in line to the throne, is due later this month.
The monarch, who has been on the throne since 1952, was spending the day at Windsor Castle, west of London.
Several hundred passers-by watched as horses from The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery galloped across Hyde Park, pulling six rare World War I-era 13-pounder field guns.
With the guns' metal gleaming in the sun, the soldiers fired blank rounds at 10-second intervals, the boom echoing off towers around the city as white smoke billowed.
AFP
