Queen asks Britons to stay resolute in virus fight, while PM Boris Johnson hospitalized

Queen Elizabeth II gave a rare televised address to her nation Sunday night, imploring her citizens to remain steadfast in their efforts to stay home to stop the spread of the coronavirus and promising they would look back and “take pride in how they responded to this challenge.”

The speech from the 93-year-old monarch came as Britain and other nations around the world grapple with a pandemic that sickened more than 40,000 Britons and killed more than 4,000.  

"I am speaking to you at what I know is an increasingly challenging time," the Queen said. “A time of disruption in the life of our country: a disruption that has brought grief to some, financial difficulties to many, and enormous changes to the daily lives of us all."

“I also want to thank those of you who are staying at home, thereby protecting to help the vulnerable and sparing many families the pain already felt by those who have lost loved ones,” she added. “Together we are tackling this disease and I want to reassure you that if we remain united in resolute then we will overcome

“I hope in the years to come everyone will be able to take pride in how they responded to this challenge,” she said. “And those who come after us will say that the Britons of this generation were as strong as any.”

The Queen's speech was a rare occurrence according to the BBC, which noted that during her 68-year reign she has addressed the nation regarding the first Gulf War in 1991, the death of Princess Diana in 1997, the death of the Queen's mother in 2002, and her own Diamond Jubilee in 2012.

"While her Christmas Day message is an annual event, only rarely has she made rallying speeches at key moments in the life of the nation - predominantly at times of crisis and grief," the BBC noted.

The BBC also said that the address was recorded, "by a single cameraman wearing protective equipment, with all the other technical staff in another room."

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is among those who contracted the virus. He was hospitalized shortly before the Queen’s address, because his symptoms have been persistent.