Monday, March 17, 2025

The legacy of Queen Elizabeth The Queen mother

 This blog is about the legacy of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. 

Elizabeth was born on the 4th August 1900 in London. Her parents were The Earl and Countess Of Strathmore. She grew up in Scotland in Glamis Castle with her parents and other family. 

She was educated at home by a governess until the age of eight, She was fond of field sports, dogs and horses. By the age of 14 World War 1. Her 4 brothers were called up to fight in the war in the army. Her eldest brother Fergus was killed in action at the Battle Of Loos in 1915. Another brother Michael was reported as missing in action on the 28th April 1917. Three weeks later the family had discovered he had been captured after being wounded, He remained in a prisoner of war camp for the rest of the war. 

After the 1st World War she was looking for a suitor to marry so she attended various high society events to find her match. After a while of looking she met Prince Albert who was besotted by her and proposed to her a few times. She turned it down because she wasn't sure whether she wanted to be in royal life. After a few more attempts by Albert she finally accepted the proposal. She was the woman who made Albert happy. 

They married on the 26th April 1923 at Westminster Abbey, In a new move she laid her bouquet on the unknown warrior's tomb. They both honeymooned in surrey in a manor house. The newlywed couple were given the titles The Duke and Duchess Of York that were gifted to them by King George V. 

As the wife of Albert she would accompany him on various royal tours on The King's behalf. As The Duke Of  York he was required to make speeches on his father's behalf, The Duke growing up had a difficult time he suffered a stutter and found it difficult to make public speeches. Elizabeth helped him by finding a speech therapist Lionel Louge who helped him with breathing exercises to help him calm down when he was making speeches. If it wasn't for Elizabeth he wouldn't have had the confidence to speak publicly. 

On the 21st April 1929 the couple welcomed their first child Elizabeth Alexandra Mary born in London. On the 31st August 1930 the couple welcomed their second child named Margaret Rose born in Scotland. Both daughters were named Of York as their parents were The Duke and Duchess Of York. 

In 1937 King George V died on the 20th January after a long illness. His oldest son became King Edward VIII but had issues, He wanted to marry an american divorcee Wallis Simpson. As he became The head of The Church Of England at the time people were forbidden to marry divorcees, he did however have the option to abdicate and marry Wallis in France. 

Edward took that option and abdicated on the 10th December 1937 and as he had no children the throne went down to his younger brother Prince Albert of York. As her husband ascended the throne she became his Queen Consort and was styled Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth or Her Majesty The Queen. Elizabeth was absolutely furious with Edward and Wallis because her husband wasn't ready to be king at all. 

After the coronation on the 11th May 1937 where she wore a crown made for her and was crowned by her husband's side. In 1939 World War Two broke out and The Royal Family went beyond and above and supported the country through the toughest times. The Queen refused to leave London or send their children to Canada. Throughout the war The King and Queen stayed at Buckingham Palace and only occasionally stayed the night at Windsor Castle. 

On the 13th September 1940 Buckingham Palace was bombed in a air raid while they were in residence they were not injured but the palace was damaged. This prompted The King and Queen to support people who were affected by bombing who had lost their homes in the blitz. They also refused to leave London after the bombing. 

In May 1945 the whole of Europe celebrated as the war came to an end and as a celebration in London The Royal Family along with The Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill appeared on the balcony to celebrate the end of the war. Her two daughters under security went out into the crowds to capture the magic of the celebration. 

On the 20th November 1947 her eldest daughter Princess Elizabeth married a navel officer Philip Mountbatten who was before the marriage was created The Duke Of Edinburgh. On the 14th November 1948 Elizabeth became a grandmother for the first time with the birth of Prince Charles Of Edinburgh whom she absolutely adored and doted on. On 15th August 1950 she welcomed her second grandchild Princess Anne Of Edinburgh. 

On the 6th February 1953 she became a widow when her husband King George VI passed away from lung cancer as he was a heavy smoker. He passed away peacefully at Sandringham. 

Her eldest daughter became Queen as Queen Elizabeth II and was overseas when her father passed away and arrived back into the UK. Elizabeth was now known as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother as not to be confused with her daughters name. 

After the death of her husband she made sure she was giving the best advice and support to her daughter and sometimes made some decisions on behalf of her daughter. She spent most of her time as a new widow playing with her grandchildren Charles and Anne. When Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip were away on tours their children Charles and Anne would be left to be looked after by their nannies, Aunt and grandmother. 

When it came for her youngest daughter to marry she was very much part of the decision making and made sure her daughter wed someone suitable. Margaret wanted to marry her late father's equerry Peter Townsend but the idea of the marriage was turned down as Townsend was a married man. He was sent away on a naval mission to try and keep Margaret away from him. In the end Princess Margaret married Antony Armstrong Jones The Earl Of Snowdon. 

Between her husband's death to the 60s The Queen Mother welcomed more grandchildren including Princes Andrew and Edward. In total Elizabeth had 6 grandchildren between both daughters. 

The Queen Mother absolutely hated The Duke and Duchess Of Windsor because in her eyes they were the ones who put her husband Bertie in the position of becoming King. But on the 28th May 1972 The Duke of Windsor died of lung cancer at age 77 in France, Elizabeth did feel sorry for Wallis as she knew what it was like to lose a husband. 

Around the same time her eldest grandson Charles was at the age where he should marry. She and Lord Mountbatten who was Philip's uncle ensured that they found the right woman for him. At the time Charles was seeing a girl named Camilla Shand who he went absolutely crazy for and whom he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Unfortunately Camilla was deemed an inappropriate wife for the heir to the throne as she had a 'past'. 

Elizabeth didn't want to see her grandson go down the same route as her brother-in-law so she made sure that Camilla married Andrew Parker Bowles. She married him while Charles was sent away on a naval mission. He was informed of the marriage while at sea but couldn't do anything about it and was absolutely heartbroken. 

The Queen Mother was a known party animal who loved to hold parties at her various residences including Clarance House and The Castle Of Mey. Just like her mother Princess Margaret also loved to party and host her own parties at her own place. 

The Queen Mother welcomed her grandsons new wife Lady Diana Spencer with open arms as she was very close to Diana's grandmother Lady Fernoy as she worked for Elizabeth as woman of the bedchamber. 

On the 4th August 1990 she became the longest serving member of the royal family reaching to the age of 90 years old. On the 4th August 2000 she passed a milestone and reached 100 years old. Her 100th birthday was held as a big celebration and was honoured with a pageant on the horse guards parade. She was accompanied by her grandson Charles who was extremely close to her and was rumoured to be her favourite grandchild. 

On the 9th February 2002 50 years after her husband passed away her youngest daughter Princess Margaret died of a stroke at age 71 at St Edward's Hospital in London. Her funeral took place on the same day as her father Albert 50 years on. Due to her own declining health Elizabeth went to the funeral in a car with blacked out windows. 

On the 30th March 2002 a month after her daughters death, Elizabeth died peacefully at her home in Windsor after suffering a chest cold since Christmas 2001 at age 101 she was the first member of the royal family to have lived past 100. She was surrounded by her only surviving daughter Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret's children. 

Queen Elizabeth II made the call to her eldest son Charles who was on a skiing holiday with his two sons William and Harry. Queen Elizabeth II knew how close Charles was to his grandmother, he and his sons took the flight back to the UK where Charles was said to be absolutely devastated by his grandmother's death. Charles was also the first member of the royal family to make a statement to his "Magical Grandmother" a few days later. The day before her funeral her only surviving daughter Queen Elizabeth II made a speech thanking everyone for the support. 

Her funeral took place on the 9th March 2002 at Westminster Abbey all members of her family looked absolutely devastated, Her favourite grandson Charles looked absolutely heartbroken. He was the person who would follow the procession during the day. The coffin travelled to Windsor Castle so she could be buried at the King George VI chapel where she was buried with her husband and younger daughter. In September 2022 20 years after her mother's death Queen Elizabeth II passed away at the age of 96 she was also buried along with her husband Philip at the King George VI chapel at St George's Chapel. 

Her legacy will live on when people will remember her brilliant sense of humour and her sense of duty that today is passed on to her grandson who is now King Charles III. He will also remember her legacy as with the residences she lived in Charles has not changed anything and kept it more or less the same to honour his grandmother. 

Times has changed since she died including the marriage of divorcees as Charles is now married to his long term love Camilla and now Camilla has now got the same style and title as Queen Elizabeth The Queen mother when she was consort. Camilla is now known as Queen Camilla and I personally believe that she would accept Camilla because Camilla really helps her grandson like she did with Bertie.

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