Six-year-old Maisie Gregory was waiting all day for her meeting with the Queen.
She had been selected to continue the tradition of handing the Queen a bouquet of flowers after the Queen’s appearance.
Maisie — looking as cute as a button — handed the Queen her flowers and offered her a polite curtsy.
The Queen accepted the flowers, but when she started to walk away, hilarity ensued.
The Queen passed one of the royal guards, who moved to salute her as she exited. His arm came jolting upward and struck little Maisie right in the face.
The blow sent Maisie’s hat flying off of her head. In the video, you can hear her shout “Ow!” as the queen walked away, completely oblivious to the scene behind her.
The Queen might not have noticed, but the soldier certainly did. After the Queen walked out of frame, the soldier bent down to apologize to Maisie and her mother, Joanne Gregory.
Joanne, who is the wife of Regimental Sergeant Major Mertin Gregory, accepted the apology and said her daughter was fine.
Little Maisie was just tired from all of the excitement and lack of sleep.
According to Wales Online, Joanne said that her daughter had been up since 4:45 AM in anticipation of the event. She got all dolled-up in her traditional Welsh clothing for the Queen’s greeting.
“She took a bit of convincing initially,” Joanne said.
“But when she realized she was going to meet the Queen she was quite happy to wear traditional Welsh clothes.”
Martin, Maisie’s father, had just gotten done leading the Royal Welsh on a march to mark the occasion. “It was an extremely proud moment,” he said of the experience.
Although much of the interactions we see involving the royal family are buttoned-up, this minor accident was enough to put a smile on many faces.
The clip of Maisie getting smacked in the face went viral through multiple social media outlets.
Maisie is, of course, doing fine after the incident. Hopefully, the next time she meets the Queen, it will go a little more smoothly.