The Queen held meetings with Ivita Burmistre, ambassador of Latvia and Sara Affoue Amani, ambassador of Ivory Coast, on Tuesday, a statement said.

The royal family's two-week mourning period, following the death of Prince Philip on April 9, ended on Friday.

At Tuesday's event, the Queen was seen in a pale blue floral dress which featured large purple, white and yellow flowers, with a three-string pearl necklace and a diamond brooch as accessories.

She previously was wearing a mourning outfit of black clothes during the two-week grieving period.

Last Wednesday, she marked her 95th birthday.

The Queen used the event as an opportunity to thank the public for their messages of goodwill following her husband's death.

"While as a family we are in a period of great sadness, it has been a comfort to us all to see and to hear the tributes paid to my husband, from those within the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth and around the world," she said in a statement.

"My family and I would like to thank you all for the support and kindness shown to us in recent days. We have been deeply touched, and continue to be reminded that Philip had such an extraordinary impact on countless people throughout his life."

Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, was the longest-serving consort in British history.

At his death aged 99, he had been married to the reigning monarch for more than seven decades.

Australian Associated Press