A staple on the Queen's calendar each year is the Royal Maundy Service, held on Maundy Thursday - the day before Good Friday, before Easter. Royal Maundy has been a tradition for centuries. It once involved the sovereign washing the feet of the poor in addition to giving them money and gifts; these days, the Queen hands out special purses of "Maundy money" to groups of pensioners (retirees) each year. A group of men and a group of women, each group equal to the sovereign's age at the time of the service, are selected by the local diocese to receive the coins. The service was normally held at Westminster Abbey, but the Queen opted to vary the location after her accession. As of 2017, the Queen had visited every Anglican cathedral in England for the Royal Maundy Service.
The first Maundy Service of the Queen's reign was actually the first official public engagement of her reign. For the first several years, she primarily wears a simple pair of pearl stud earrings, with a Three Strand Pearl Necklace.
1954, Westminster Abbey: The Queen was not present, as she was away on a Commonwealth tour.
1955, Southwark Cathedral: No Brooch
1956, Westminster Abbey
: Williamson Diamond Brooch
1959, St George's Chapel, Windsor: No Brooch
1960, Westminster Abbey: The Queen was not present, due to Prince Andrew's recent birth.
1961, Rochester Cathedral: No Brooch
1962, Westminster Abbey: No Brooch
1967, Durham Cathedral: Unidentified Brooch
1968, Westminster Abbey: Not Pictured
1969, Selby Abbey: No Brooch
1970, Westminster Abbey: The Queen was not present, as she was in New Zealand.
1973, Westminster Abbey: Unknown Brooch
1975, Peterborough Cathedral: No Brooch
1976, Hereford Cathedral: Not Pictured
1977, Westminster Abbey: Not Pictured
1979, Winchester Cathedral: Not Pictured
1981, Westminster Abbey: Not Pictured
1991, Westminster Abbey: Not Pictured
1994, Truro Cathedral: Not Pictured
2009, St
. Edmundsbury Cathedral:
Queen Mother's Palm Leaf
2010
, Derby Cathedral:
Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee Brooch
2011, Westminster Abbey:
Jardine Star Brooch
2012, York Minster:
Jardine Star Brooch
2013, Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford:
Prince Albert's Sapphire Brooch
2014, Blackburn Cathedral:
Rose Gold Brooch
2015, Sheffield Cathedral:
Mappin & Webb Orchid Brooch
2016, St. George's Chapel:
Queen Victoria's Bow Brooch
2017, Leicester Cathedral:
Botswana Flower Brooch
2018, St. George's Chapel: No Brooch
2019, St. George's Chapel:
Australian Wattle Brooch
Photos: British Pathé/PA/BBC/GettyImages//Peterborough Today/Salisbury/News&Star/Warwickshire Life/Corbis