Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (Elizabeth Angela Marguerite; 4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the
BritishThe British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom, that had originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height it was...
DominionA dominion, often Dominion, refers to one of a group of semi-autonomous polities that were nominally under British sovereignty, constituting the British Empire and British Commonwealth, from the late 19th century. They included Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland, South Africa, and the...
s from 1936 until 1952 as the wife of King
George VIGeorge VI was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions from 11 December 1936 until his death...
. After her husband's death, she was known as
Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, to avoid confusion with her daughter, Queen
Elizabeth IIElizabeth II is the queen regnant of sixteen independent states known informally as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,...
. She was the last
Queen of IrelandThe designation King of Ireland and Queen of Ireland was used during three periods of Irish history.-Overview:In the centuries prior to 1169, Ireland was ostensibly in the process of becoming a national kingdom under a High King of Ireland. In the aftermath of a Cambro-Norman incursion into...
and
Empress of IndiaEmperor/Empress of India was used as a title by the last Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah II, and revived by the colonial British monarchs during the British Raj in India....
.
Born into a family of Scottish nobility (
her fatherClaude George Bowes-Lyon, 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, KG, KT, GCVO, TD was a landowner and the maternal grandfather of Queen Elizabeth II....
inherited the
Earldom of Strathmore and KinghorneThe title Earl of Kinghorne was created in the Peerage of Scotland in 1606 for Patrick Lyon. In 1677, the designation of the earldom changed to "Strathmore and Kinghorne"...
in 1904), she came to prominence in 1923 when she married Albert, Duke of York, the second son of
King George VGeorge V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 1910 through World War I until his death in 1936...
and
Queen MaryMary of Teck was Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Empress of India as the consort of King-Emperor George V. By birth, she was a princess of Teck, in the Kingdom of Württemberg, with the style Serene Highness...
. As Duchess of York, she – along with her husband and their two daughters Elizabeth and
MargaretThe Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon was the younger sister of Queen Elizabeth II....
– embodied traditional ideas of family and public service. She undertook a variety of public engagements, and became known as the "Smiling Duchess" because of her consistent public expression.
In 1936, her husband unexpectedly became king when her brother-in-law,
Edward VIIIEdward VIII was King of the United Kingdom and the British dominions, and Emperor of India from 20 January 1936 until his abdication on 11 December 1936, after which he was immediately succeeded by his younger brother, George VI...
,
abdicatedIn 1936, the desire of King-Emperor Edward VIII to marry Wallis Simpson, a twice-divorced American socialite, caused a constitutional crisis in the British Empire....
in order to marry the American divorcée Wallis Simpson. As queen consort, Elizabeth accompanied her husband on diplomatic tours to France and North America in the run-up to
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. During the war, her seemingly indomitable spirit provided moral support to the British public, and in recognition of her role as a
propagandaPropaganda is communication aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position. As opposed to impartially providing information, propaganda in its most basic sense, presents information primarily to influence an audience...
tool,
Adolf HitlerAdolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , popularly known as the Nazi Party...
described her as "the most dangerous woman in Europe". After the war, her husband's health deteriorated and she was widowed at the age of 51 in 1952.
On the death of her mother-in-law
Queen MaryMary of Teck was Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Empress of India as the consort of King-Emperor George V. By birth, she was a princess of Teck, in the Kingdom of Württemberg, with the style Serene Highness...
in 1953, with her brother-in-law living abroad and her elder daughter Queen at the age of 25, Elizabeth became the senior member of the
Royal FamilyImage:Roy-fam-2007.jpg|right|500px|thumb|Members of the Royal Family gathered for a dinner celebrating the 60th wedding anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh Image:Roy-fam-2007.jpg|right|500px|thumb|Members of the Royal Family gathered for a dinner...
and assumed a position as family matriarch. In her later years, she was a consistently popular member of the family, when other members were suffering from low levels of public approval.
Only after the illness and death of her younger daughter, Princess Margaret, in early 2002 did she appear to grow frail. She died seven weeks after Margaret, at the age of 101.
Early life
Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon was the youngest daughter and the ninth of ten children of
Claude George Bowes-LyonClaude George Bowes-Lyon, 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, KG, KT, GCVO, TD was a landowner and the maternal grandfather of Queen Elizabeth II....
, Lord Glamis, (later 14th
Earl of Strathmore and KinghorneThe title Earl of Kinghorne was created in the Peerage of Scotland in 1606 for Patrick Lyon. In 1677, the designation of the earldom changed to "Strathmore and Kinghorne"...
), and his wife, Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck. Her mother was descended from British Prime Minister
William Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of PortlandWilliam Henry Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland PC , was a British Whig and Tory statesman, Chancellor of the University of Oxford and Prime Minister. He was known before 1762 by the courtesy title Marquess of Titchfield. He held a title of every degree of British nobility - that of Duke,...
, and
Governor-General of IndiaThe Governor-General of India was the head of the British administration in India, and later, after Indian independence, the representative of the monarch and de facto head of state. The office was created in 1773, with the title of Governor-General of the Presidency of Fort William...
Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess WellesleyRichard Colley Wesley, later Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley KG, PC , styled Viscount Wellesley from birth until 1781, was an Irish politician and colonial administrator. He was the eldest son of Garret Wesley, 1st Earl of Mornington, an Irish peer, and brother of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of...
, who was the elder brother of another Prime Minister,
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of WellingtonField Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, KP, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Anglo-Irish soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the nineteenth century....
.
The location of her birth remains uncertain, but reputedly she was born either in her parents'
WestminsterWestminster is an area of Central London, within the City of Westminster. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, southwest of the City of London and southwest of Charing Cross...
home at Belgrave Mansions, Grosvenor Gardens, or in a horse-drawn ambulance on the way to the hospital. Her birth was registered at
HitchinHitchin is a town in Hertfordshire, England with an estimated population of 30,360.-History:Hitchin is first noted as the central place of the Hicce people mentioned in a 7th century document the Tribal Hidage. The tribal name is Brittonic rather than Old English and derives from *siccā, meaning...
,
HertfordshireHertfordshire , abbreviated Herts, is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford....
, near the Strathmores' country house,
St Paul's Walden BurySt. Paul's Walden Bury is a stately home and surrounding gardens located in the village of St Paul's Walden in Hertfordshire. A home of the Bowes-Lyon family, it is best known for its connection to the late Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother...
, which was also given as her birthplace in the
census the following yearA nationwide census was conducted in England and Wales on 31 March 1901. It contains records for 32 million people and 6 million houses, and was published online in 2003. The site is run by The National Archive; users have to pay to access data. It covers the whole of England and Wales, with the...
. She was christened there on 23 September 1900, in the local parish church.
She spent much of her childhood at
St Paul's WaldenSt Paul's Walden is a village about five miles south of Hitchin in Hertfordshire, England. The parish of St Paul's Walden also includes the village of Whitwell. St Paul's Walden has two fine 18th-century mansions, both standing in parks of great beauty: Stagenhoe and St Paul's Walden Bury, which...
and at
Glamis CastleGlamis Castle is situated beside the village of Glamis in Angus, Scotland. It is the home of the Earl and Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne, and is open to the public. Glamis Castle was the childhood home of Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, best known as the Queen Mother. Her second daughter, Princess...
, the Earl's ancestral home in
GlamisGlamis is a small village in Angus, Scotland, located four miles south of Kirriemuir and five miles southwest of Forfar. It is the location of Glamis Castle, the childhood home of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother....
,
AngusAngus is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders onto Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross and Dundee City...
,
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. She was educated at home by a governess until the age of 8, and was fond of field sports, ponies and dogs. When she started school in London, she astonished her teachers by precociously beginning an essay with two
GreekGreek , an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, is the language of the Greeks. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. In its ancient form, it is the language of classical...
words from
XenophonXenophon , son of Gryllus, of the deme Erchia of Athens, also known as Xenophon of Athens and Xenophon of Thebes, was a soldier, mercenary, and a contemporary and admirer of Socrates...
's
AnabasisAnabasis is the most famous work of the Greek professional soldier and writer Xenophon. The journey it narrates is his best known accomplishment and "one of the great adventures in human history," as Will Durant expressed the common assessment.- The account :Xenophon accompanied the Ten Thousand,...
. Her best subjects were literature and scripture. After returning to private education under a German governess she passed the
Oxford Local ExaminationOCR is an examination board that sets examinations and awards qualifications . It is one of England, Wales and Northern Ireland's five main examination boards....
with distinction aged 13.
On her fourteenth birthday, Britain
declared warWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
on
GermanyThe German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871 to 1918, when it became a German republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of Wilhelm II .The term Second Reich...
. Her elder brother,
FergusCaptain Fergus Bowes-Lyon was an older brother of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother.He was born at Glamis Castle in Forfarshire and educated at Eton College, Berkshire...
, an officer in the
Black WatchThe Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland.Prior to 28 March 2006, the Black Watch was an infantry regiment in its own right; The Black Watch from 1931 to 2006, and The Royal Highland Regiment from 1881 to 1931...
Regiment, was killed in action in
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
at the
Battle of LoosThe Battle of Loos was one of the major British offensives mounted on the Western Front in 1915 during World War I. It marked the first time the British used poison gas during the war, and is also famous for the fact that it witnessed the first large-scale use of new army or "Kitchener's Army"...
in 1915. Another brother, Michael, was reported missing in action in May 1917. He had actually been captured after being wounded and remained in a
prisoner of warA prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a combatant who is held in continuing custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
camp for the rest of the war. Glamis was turned into a convalescent home for wounded soldiers, which Elizabeth helped to run. One of the soldiers she treated wrote in her autograph book that she was to be "Hung, drawn, & quartered ... Hung in diamonds, drawn in a coach and four, and quartered in the best house in the land."
Marriage to Prince Albert
Prince Albert, Duke of York – "Bertie" to the family – was the second son of
George VGeorge V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 1910 through World War I until his death in 1936...
. He initially proposed to Elizabeth in 1921, but she turned him down, being "afraid never, never again to be free to think, speak and act as I feel I really ought to". When he declared he would marry no other, his mother,
Queen MaryMary of Teck was Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Empress of India as the consort of King-Emperor George V. By birth, she was a princess of Teck, in the Kingdom of Württemberg, with the style Serene Highness...
, visited Glamis to see for herself the girl who had stolen her son's heart. She became convinced that Elizabeth was "the one girl who could make Bertie happy", but nevertheless refused to interfere.
Eventually Elizabeth agreed to marry Albert, despite her misgivings about royal life. The engagement was announced in January 1923. Albert's freedom in choosing Elizabeth, legally a
commonerIn British law, a commoner is someone who is neither the Sovereign nor a peer. Therefore, any member of the Royal Family who is not a peer, such as HRH Prince William of Wales or HRH The Princess Royal, is a commoner, as is any member of a peer's family, including someone who holds only a courtesy...
though the daughter of a peer, was considered a gesture in favour of political modernisation; previously, princes were expected to marry princesses from other royal families. They married on 26 April 1923, at
Westminster AbbeyThe Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, which is almost always referred to popularly and informally as Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in Westminster, London, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster...
. Elizabeth laid her bouquet at the Tomb of
the Unknown WarriorThe British tomb of The Unknown Warrior holds an unidentified British soldier killed on a European battlefield during World War I. He was buried in Westminster Abbey, London on November 11, 1920, simultaneously with a similar operation in France, making both tombs the first honouring the...
on her way into the Abbey, a gesture which every royal bride since has copied, though subsequent brides have chosen to do this on the way back from the altar rather than to it. She became styled
Her Royal Highness The Duchess of York. They honeymooned at
Polesden LaceyPolesden Lacey is an Edwardian house . It is located on the North Downs at Great Bookham, near Dorking, Surrey, England. It is owned and run by the National Trust and is one of the Trust's most popular properties....
, a manor house in
SurreySurrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire, and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford...
, and then went to Scotland.
In 1926, the couple had their first child, Princess Elizabeth – "Lilibet" to the family – who would later become
Queen Elizabeth IIElizabeth II is the queen regnant of sixteen independent states known informally as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,...
. Another daughter,
Margaret RoseThe Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon was the younger sister of Queen Elizabeth II....
, was born four years later. The Duke and Duchess of York
travelled to AustraliaSince 1867, there have been over fifty visits by a member of the Royal Family to Australia, though only six of those came before 1954. Queen Elizabeth II was the first reigning monarch of Australia to set foot on Australian soil, on February 3, 1954...
to open
Parliament HouseOld Parliament House, formerly known as the Provisional Parliament House, was the seat of the Parliament of Australia from 1927 to 1988. The building was opened in 9 May 1927 as a temporary base for the Commonwealth Parliament following its relocation from Melbourne to the new capital, Canberra,...
in
CanberraCanberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth largest Australian city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory, south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
in 1927.
Accession and abdication of Edward VIII
On 20 January 1936,
King George VGeorge V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 1910 through World War I until his death in 1936...
died and the succession passed to Albert's brother, Prince Edward, the Prince of Wales, who became King
Edward VIIIEdward VIII was King of the United Kingdom and the British dominions, and Emperor of India from 20 January 1936 until his abdication on 11 December 1936, after which he was immediately succeeded by his younger brother, George VI...
. George had expressed reservations about his eldest child, "I pray God that my eldest son will never marry and that nothing will come between Bertie and Lilibet and the throne."
As if granting his father's wish, Edward forced a constitutional crisis by insisting on marrying the American divorcée Mrs Wallis Simpson. Although legally Edward could have married Mrs Simpson and remained king, his ministers believed that the people would never accept her as queen and advised against the marriage. As a
constitutional monarchA constitutional monarchy is a form of government in which a monarch acts as head of state within the parameters of a written , unwritten or blended constitution...
, Edward was obliged to accept ministerial advice. Rather than abandon his plans to marry Mrs Simpson, Edward chose to abdicate in favour of Albert, who reluctantly became king in his place. Albert took the
regnal nameA regnal name, or reign name, is a formal name used by some popes and monarchs during their reigns. Since medieval times, monarchs have frequently chosen to use a name different from their own personal name when they inherit a throne....
George VIGeorge VI was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions from 11 December 1936 until his death...
. He and Elizabeth were
crownedThe Coronation of the British Monarch is a ceremony in which the monarch of the United Kingdom is formally crowned and invested with regalia...
King and Queen of
Great BritainGreat Britain is an island lying to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island. With a population of about 59.6 million people, it is the third most populated island on Earth. Great Britain is surrounded by over 1000 smaller...
,
IrelandIreland is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islets. To the east of Ireland, separated by the Irish Sea, is the island of Great Britain...
and the
British dominions beyond the seasA dominion, often Dominion, refers to one of a group of semi-autonomous polities that were nominally under British sovereignty, constituting the British Empire and British Commonwealth, from the late 19th century. They included Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland, South Africa, and the...
, and Emperor and Empress of
IndiaThe British Raj was the British colonial rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; it can also refer to the period of dominion, and even the region under the rule...
on 12 May 1937, the date already nominated for the coronation of Edward VIII.
Elizabeth's crownThe Crown of the Queen Mother is the platinum crown manufactured for, and worn by, Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, the queen consort of King George VI of the United Kingdom at their coronation in Westminster Abbey in 1937...
was made of platinum and contained the
Koh-i-NoorThe Kōh-i Nūr Persian/Urdu: کوہ نور, ) which means "Mountain of Light" from Persian, also spelled Kohinoor, Koh-e Noor or Koh-i-Nur is a 105 carat diamond that was once the largest known diamond in the world. The Kohinoor originated at Golconda in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India...
diamond.
Edward and Mrs Simpson married, and became the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, but while Edward was a Royal Highness, George VI decided to withhold the style from the Duchess, a decision which Elizabeth supported. Elizabeth was later quoted as referring to the Duchess as "that woman". For her part, the Duchess referred to Elizabeth as "Cookie".
Royal tour of Canada and the United States in 1939
In summer 1938, the French press praised the demeanour and charm of the royal couple during a succesful State Visit to France, augmented by an 'all white trousseau' created by
Norman HartnellSir Norman Bishop Hartnell KCVO 1977, MVO 1953, PA Officier de l'Ordre des Palmes Academiques 1939{born 12 June 1901 London died 8 June 1979 Windsor} was an influential British fashion designer....
for the Queen. In June 1939, Elizabeth's husband became the first reigning
KingThe monarchy of Canada also referred to as The Crown in Right of Canada, Her Majesty in Right of Canada, or The Queen in Right of Canada is the constitutional system of government in which a hereditary monarch is the sovereign and head of state of Canada,
forming the core, or "the...
to tour Canada, as well as the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. According to the official Royal Tour historian
Gustave LanctotGustave Lanctot, OC, FRSC, also spelled Gustave Lanctôt, was a Canadian historian and archivist.Born in Saint-Constant, Quebec, he studied law at Université de Montréal and was called to the Quebec Bar in 1907. A Rhodes Scholar, he studied political science and history from 1909 to 1911 while at...
, George VI was to be present in
CanadaCanada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
as a living example of Canada's status as an independent kingdom. During the tour of the United States, the King and Queen were accompanied by
Canadian Prime MinisterThe Prime Minister of Canada is the primary Minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government of Canada. The office is not outlined in any of the documents that constitute the written portion of the constitution of Canada; executive authority is formally vested in the...
Mackenzie KingWilliam Lyon Mackenzie King, PC, OM, CMG was a Canadian lawyer, economist, university professor, civil servant, journalist, fisherman, waiter, teacher and politician. He served as the tenth Prime Minister of Canada from December 29, 1921, to June 28, 1926; September 25, 1926, to August 6, 1930;...
, as the sole Minister in Attendance, rather than by a British minister, by way of reinforcing that their visit to the United States was a visit from Canada.
The extensive tour took them across Canada from coast to coast and back, with a brief detour into the United States, where they visited the Roosevelts in the
White HouseThe White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., it was built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the late Georgian style and has been the residence of every...
and at their
Hudson ValleyThe Hudson Valley refers to the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in New York State, generally from northern Westchester County northward to the cities of Albany and Troy...
estateThe Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site preserves the Springwood estate in Hyde Park, New York, United States of America. Springwood was the birthplace, life-long home, and burial place of the 32nd President of the United States, Franklin Delano Roosevelt...
. According to an often-told story, during one of the earliest of the royal couple's repeated encounters with the crowds, a
Second Boer WarThe Second Boer War , commonly referred to as The Boer War and also known as the South African War , the Anglo-Boer War and in Afrikaans as the Anglo-Boereoorlog or Tweede Vryheidsoorlog , or the Engelse oorlog was fought...
veteran asked Elizabeth, "Are you
ScotsThe Scots people and an ethnic group indigenous to Scotland.An ethnic group, historically they emerged from an amalgamation of Picts, Gaels and Brythons....
or are you
EnglishThe English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity as a people is of early medieval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn....
?" She replied, "I am a Canadian!" Their reception by the Canadian and U.S. public was extremely enthusiastic, and dissipated in large measure any residual feeling that George and Elizabeth were in any way a lesser substitute for Edward. Elizabeth told Prime Minister Mackenzie King, "that tour made us", and she
returned to CanadaThere was an extended royal presence in Canada through the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries,
either as an official tour, a vacation, a period of military service, or a viceregal posting by a member of the Royal Family...
frequently both on official tours and privately.
World War II
During
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the King and Queen became symbols of the nation's resistance. Shortly after the declaration of war,
The Queen's Book of the Red CrossThe Queen's Book of the Red Cross was published in November 1939 in afundraising effort to aid the Red Cross during World War II.The book was sponsored by Queen Elizabeth, and itscontents were contributed by fifty British authors and artists....
was conceived. Fifty authors and artists contributed to the book, which was fronted by
Cecil BeatonSir Cecil Walter Hardy Beaton CBE, was an English fashion and portrait photographer and an Academy Award-winning stage and costume designer for films and the theatre.- Biography :...
's portrait of the Queen and was sold in aid of the Red Cross. Elizabeth publicly refused to leave London or send the children to Canada, even during
the BlitzThe Blitz was the sustained bombing of Britain by Nazi Germany between 7 September 1940 and 10 May 1941, in World War II. While the Blitz hit many towns and cities across the country, it began with the bombing of London for 57 consecutive nights...
, when she was advised by
the CabinetIn the politics of the United Kingdom, the Cabinet is the collective decision-making body of Her Majesty's Government, composed of the Prime Minister and some 22 Cabinet Ministers, the most senior of government ministers.H.M...
to do so. She said, "The children won't go without me. I won't leave the King. And the King will never leave."
She often made visits to parts of London that were targeted by the
GermanNazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany between 1933 and 1945, while it was led by Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Worker's Party . The name Third Reich refers to the state as the successor to the Holy Roman Empire of the Middle Ages and the German...
LuftwaffeLuftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1933 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956.Schweizer Luftwaffe is also the name of the Swiss Air...
, in particular the
East EndThe East End of London, known vernacularly as the East End, is the area of London, England, east of the medieval walled City of London and north of the River Thames, although it is not defined by universally accepted formal boundaries...
, near London's docks. Her visits initially provoked hostility. Rubbish was thrown at her and the crowds jeered, in part because she dressed in expensive clothing which served to alienate her from those suffering the privations caused by the war. She explained that if the public came to see her they would wear their best clothes, so she should reciprocate in kind;
Norman HartnellSir Norman Bishop Hartnell KCVO 1977, MVO 1953, PA Officier de l'Ordre des Palmes Academiques 1939{born 12 June 1901 London died 8 June 1979 Windsor} was an influential British fashion designer....
dressed her in gentle colours and never black, in order to represent "the rainbow of hope". When
Buckingham PalaceBuckingham Palace is the official London residence of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
itself took several hits during the height of the bombing, Elizabeth was able to say, "I'm glad we've been bombed. It makes me feel I can look the East End in the face."
Though the King and Queen spent the working day at Buckingham Palace, partly for security and family reasons they stayed at night at
Windsor CastleWindsor Castle, in Windsor in the English country of Berkshire, is the largest inhabited castle in the world and, dating back to the time of William the Conqueror, is the oldest in continuous occupation...
(about 20 miles [35 kilometres] west of central London) with the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret. The Palace had lost much of its staff to the
armyThe British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England and Scotland and...
, and most of the rooms were shut. Because of fears of imminent invasion during the "
Phony WarThe Phoney War, also called the Twilight War by Winston Churchill, der Sitzkrieg in German , the Bore War and la drôle de guerre was a phase in early World War II – in the months following the German invasion of Poland in September 1939 and preceding the Battle of...
" the Queen was given revolver training.
Because of her effect on British morale,
Adolf HitlerAdolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , popularly known as the Nazi Party...
is said to have called her "the most dangerous woman in Europe". However, prior to the war both she and her husband, like most of
ParliamentThe Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories. It alone has parliamentary sovereignty, conferring upon it ultimate power over all other political bodies in the UK and its territories...
and the British public, had been supporters of
appeasementAppeasement is "the policy of settling international quarrels by admitting and satisfying grievances through rational negotiation and compromise, thereby avoiding the resort to an armed conflict which would be expensive, bloody, and possibly dangerous." The term is most often applied to the foreign...
and Prime Minister
Neville ChamberlainArthur Neville Chamberlain was a British Conservative politician and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1937 to 1940...
, believing after the experience of the First World War that war had to be avoided at all costs. After the resignation of Chamberlain, the King asked
Winston ChurchillSir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS, PC was a British politician known chiefly for his leadership of the United Kingdom during World War II. He served as Prime Minister from 1940 to 1945 and again from 1951 to 1955. A noted statesman and orator, Churchill was also an officer...
to form a government. Although the King was initially reluctant to support Churchill, in due course both the King and Queen came to respect and admire him for what they perceived to be his courage and solidarity.
New role in widowhood
On 6 February 1952, King George VI died of
lung cancerLung cancer is a disease of uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. This growth may lead to metastasis, which is the invasion of adjacent tissue and infiltration beyond the lungs. The vast majority of primary lung cancers are carcinomas of the lung, derived from epithelial cells...
. Shortly afterward, Elizabeth began to be styled
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. This style was adopted because the normal style for the widow of a king, "Queen Elizabeth", would have been too similar to the style of her elder daughter, now
Queen Elizabeth IIElizabeth II is the queen regnant of sixteen independent states known informally as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,...
. Popularly, she simply became "the Queen Mother" or "the Queen Mum".
She was devastated by the King's death and retired to Scotland; however, after a meeting with Prime Minister Winston Churchill, she broke her retirement and resumed her public duties. Eventually she became just as busy as Queen Mother as she had been as Queen. In July 1953, she undertook her first overseas visit since the funeral, laying the foundation stone in
Mount PleasantMount Pleasant is the name of a residential suburb in the northern part of Harare, Zimbabwe. It is the home of the University of Zimbabwe and Mount Pleasant School....
of the
University College of Rhodesia and Nyasaland – the current University of ZimbabweThe University of Zimbabwe in Harare, is the oldest and largest university in Zimbabwe. It was founded through a special relationship with the University of London and it opened its doors to its first students in 1952. The university has ten faculties offering a wide variety of degree programmes...
.
The widowed queen also oversaw the restoration of the remote
Castle of MeyThe Castle of Mey is located in Caithness, on the north coast of Scotland, about west of John o' Groats. In fine weather there are views from the castle north to the Orkney Islands.-History:...
on the
CaithnessCaithness is a registration county, lieutenancy area and historic local government area of Scotland. The name was used also for the earldom of Caithness and the Caithness constituency of the Parliament of the United Kingdom . Boundaries are not identical in all contexts, but the Caithness area is...
coast of Scotland, which she used to "get away from everything" for three weeks in August and ten days in October each year. Inspired by the amateur jockey
Lord MildmayAnthony Bingham Mildmay, 2nd Baron Mildmay of Flete was a gifted amateur steeplechaser who kindled the Queen Mother’s interest in National Hunt racing.-Birth, education and military service:...
, she developed an interest in horse racing that continued for the rest of her life, owning the winners of approximately 500 races. Her distinctive light blue colours were carried by horses such as Special Cargo, the winner of the 1984
Whitbread Gold CupThe Bet365 Gold Cup is a Grade 3 National Hunt chase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Sandown Park over a distance of 3 miles and 5½ furlongs , and during its running there are twenty-four fences to be jumped...
and The Argonaut. Although (contrary to rumour) she never placed bets, she did have the racing commentaries piped direct to her London residence,
Clarence HouseClarence House is a royal home in London, situated on The Mall. It is attached to St. James's Palace and shares the palace's garden. For nearly 50 years, from 1953 to 2002, it was home to Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, but is now the official residence of The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of...
, so she could follow the races.
Before the marriage of
Lady Diana SpencerDiana, Princess of Wales, was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales. Their sons, Princes William and Harry, are second and third in line to the thrones of the United Kingdom and fifteen other Commonwealth Realms.A public figure from the announcement of her engagement to Prince Charles, Diana...
to her grandson
Prince CharlesCharles, Prince of Wales is the eldest child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Since 1952, he has been heir apparent to the thrones of the Commonwealth realms. After earning a bachelor of arts from Trinity College, Cambridge, Charles served a tour of duty with Royal Navy...
, and after Diana's death, Queen Elizabeth – known for her personal and public charm – was by far the most popular member of the
British Royal FamilyImage:Roy-fam-2007.jpg|right|500px|thumb|Members of the Royal Family gathered for a dinner celebrating the 60th wedding anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh Image:Roy-fam-2007.jpg|right|500px|thumb|Members of the Royal Family gathered for a dinner...
. Her signature dress of large upturned hat with netting and dresses with draped panels of fabric became a distinctive personal style. She had a discerning love of the arts, and purchased works by
Claude MonetClaude Monet also known as Oscar Claude Monet or Claude Oscar Monet
[ giverny.org...]
,
Augustus JohnAugustus Edwin John OM, RA, was a Welsh painter, draughtsman, and etcher. For a short time around 1910, he was an important exponent of Post-Impressionism in the United Kingdom....
and
Peter Carl FabergéPeter Carl Fabergé also known as Carl Gustavovich Fabergé in Russia was a Russian jeweler, best known for the famous Fabergé eggs, made in the style of genuine Easter eggs, but using precious metals and gemstones rather than more mundane materials.He was born in Saint Petersburg, Russia to the...
, among others.
In December 1966, she underwent a 90-minute operation to remove a tumour after she was diagnosed with colon cancer. Contrary to rumours, she did not have a colostomy.
Centenarian
In her later years, the Queen Mother became known for her longevity. Her hundredth birthday—4 August 2000—was celebrated in a number of ways: a parade that celebrated the highlights of her life included contributions from
Norman WisdomSir Norman Wisdom OBE is a mostly retired English comedian, singer, songwriter, actor and musician.-Early years:Norman Wisdom was born in the Marylebone district of London. His parents were Frederick, a chauffeur, and Maud Wisdom , a dressmaker who often worked for West End theatres. The couple...
and
John MillsSir John Mills, CBE was an English actor, who made more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades.-Life and career:...
; her image appeared on a special commemorative £20 note issued by the
Royal Bank of ScotlandThe Royal Bank of Scotland Group is a British banking and insurance holding company in which HM Treasury holds a 70.33% controlling shareholding, through UK Financial Investments Limited...
; and she attended a lunch at the
Guildhall, LondonThe Guildhall is a building in the City of London, off Gresham Street and Basinghall Street, in the wards of Bassishaw and Cheap. It has been used as a town hall for several hundred years, and is still the ceremonial and administrative centre of the City of London and its Corporation...
, at which
George CareyGeorge Leonard Carey, Baron Carey of Clifton PC FKC was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1991 to 2002. He was the first modern holder not to have attended Oxford or Cambridge University...
, the
Archbishop of CanterburyAlso see Leaders of ChristianityThe Archbishop of Canterbury is the chief bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury, the see that churches must be in communion with in order to be...
, accidentally attempted to drink her glass of wine. Her quick admonition of "That's mine!" caused widespread amusement.
In December 2001, the Queen Mother had a fall in which she fractured her
pelvisIn human anatomy, the pelvis is the part of the trunk inferioposterior to the abdomen in the transition area between the trunk and the lower limbs...
. Even so, she insisted on standing for the National Anthem during the memorial service for her husband on 6 February the following year. Just three days later, her second daughter Princess Margaret died. On 13 February 2002, at
Sandringham HouseSandringham House is a country house on of land near the village of Sandringham in Norfolk, England. The house is privately owned by the British Royal Family and is located on the royal Sandringham Estate, which lies within the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.-History and current...
, the Queen Mother fell and cut her arm. A doctor and an ambulance with a resuscitation unit (the latter only being there as a precaution) were called to Sandringham, where the wound on the Queen Mother's arm was dressed. Despite this fall, the Queen Mother was still keen to attend Margaret's funeral at St George's Chapel, Windsor, two days later on Friday of that week. The Queen and the rest of the royal family were greatly concerned about the journey the Queen Mother was facing to get from Norfolk to Windsor. Nevertheless, she made the journey but insisted that she be shielded from the press, so that no photographs of her in a wheelchair could be taken.
Death
On 30 March 2002, at 3:15 p.m., the Queen Mother died peacefully in her sleep at the
Royal LodgeRoyal Lodge is a house in Windsor Great Park, located half a mile north of Cumberland Lodge and 3 miles south of Windsor Castle. It was the Windsor residence of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother from 1952 until her death there in 2002...
, Windsor, with her surviving daughter, Queen Elizabeth II, at her bedside. She had been suffering from a cold for the last four months of her life. She was 101 years old, and at the time of her death was the longest-lived member of the royal family in British history. This record was broken on 24 July 2003, by her last surviving sister-in-law
Princess Alice, Duchess of GloucesterPrincess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester was the wife and then widow of Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, the third son of King George V and Queen Mary...
, who died aged 102 on 29 October 2004.
Elizabeth grew
camelliaCamellia, the camellias, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. They are native to eastern and southern Asia, from the Himalaya east to Japan and Indonesia. There are 100–250 described species, with some controversy over the exact number. The genus was named by Linnaeus after the...
s in every one of her gardens, and as her body was taken from the
Royal LodgeRoyal Lodge is a house in Windsor Great Park, located half a mile north of Cumberland Lodge and 3 miles south of Windsor Castle. It was the Windsor residence of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother from 1952 until her death there in 2002...
,
WindsorWindsor is a suburban town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England. It is best known as the site of Windsor Castle....
to lie in state at Westminster Hall, camellias from her own gardens were placed on top of the flag-draped coffin. More than 200,000 people over three days filed past as she lay in state in Westminster Hall at the
Palace of WestminsterThe Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament, is the seat of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons...
. Members of the household cavalry and other branches of the armed forces, who included
James BluntJames Blunt , is an English singer-songwriter whose debut album, Back to Bedlam, and single releases, especially "You're Beautiful", brought him to fame in 2005. His repertoire is a mix of pop, rock and acoustic-tinged soft rock...
, stood guard at the four corners of the catafalque. At one point, the Queen Mother's four grandsons
Prince CharlesCharles, Prince of Wales is the eldest child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Since 1952, he has been heir apparent to the thrones of the Commonwealth realms. After earning a bachelor of arts from Trinity College, Cambridge, Charles served a tour of duty with Royal Navy...
,
Prince AndrewThe Prince Andrew, Duke of York , is the second son and third child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...
,
Prince EdwardThe Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex is the third son and fourth child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...
and
Viscount LinleyDavid Albert Charles Armstrong-Jones, Viscount Linley , known professionally as David Linley, a bespoke furniture maker and chairman of Christie's UK, the international auction house...
mounted the guard as a mark of respect known as the
Vigil of the PrincesThe Vigil of the Princes is the unofficial name given to two occasions when male members of the British Royal Family have stood guard during the lying in state of one of their relatives.-King George V:...
—a very high honour only bestowed once before, at
King George VGeorge V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 1910 through World War I until his death in 1936...
's
lying in stateLying in state is a term used to describe the tradition in which a coffin is placed on view to allow the public at large to pay their respects to the deceased. It traditionally takes place in the principal government building of a country or city...
.
On the day of the Queen Mother's funeral, 9 April, more than a million people filled the area outside
Westminster AbbeyThe Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, which is almost always referred to popularly and informally as Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in Westminster, London, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster...
and along the route from central London to her final resting place beside her husband and younger daughter in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle. At her request, after her funeral the
wreathA wreath is a ring made of flowers, leaves and sometimes fruits that can be used as an ornament, hanging on a wall or door, or resting on a table. A small wreath can be also worn on the head as a form of headdress.-Symbolism:...
that had lain atop her coffin was placed on the Tomb of
the Unknown WarriorThe British tomb of The Unknown Warrior holds an unidentified British soldier killed on a European battlefield during World War I. He was buried in Westminster Abbey, London on November 11, 1920, simultaneously with a similar operation in France, making both tombs the first honouring the...
in Westminster Abbey, a gesture that echoed her wedding-day tribute.
Public perception
Despite being regarded as one of the most popular members of the
Royal FamilyImage:Roy-fam-2007.jpg|right|500px|thumb|Members of the Royal Family gathered for a dinner celebrating the 60th wedding anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh Image:Roy-fam-2007.jpg|right|500px|thumb|Members of the Royal Family gathered for a dinner...
in recent times who helped to stabilise the popularity of the
monarchyThe Monarchy of the United Kingdom is the constitutional monarchy of the United Kingdom and its overseas territories. The present monarch, Elizabeth II, has reigned since 6 February 1952. She and her immediate family undertake various official, ceremonial and representational duties...
as a whole, Elizabeth was subject to various degrees of criticism during her life. Among the most serious relates to perceived partiality in relation to the appeasement debate in the 1930s. Upon Neville Chamberlain's return from
MunichThe Munich Agreement was an agreement permitting German annexation of Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland. The Sudetenland were areas along borders of Czechoslovakia, mainly inhabited by Czech Germans. The agreement was negotiated at a conference held in Munich, Germany, among the major powers of Europe...
in 1938, he was invited onto the balcony of Buckingham Palace to receive acclamation from a crowd of well-wishers. While broadly popular among the general public, Chamberlain's policy towards Hitler was the subject of some opposition in the
House of CommonsThe House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 646 members, who are known as "Members...
, which led historian
John GriggJohn Edward Poynder Grigg was a British writer, historian and politician. He was the 2nd Baron Altrincham from 1955 until he disclaimed that title under the Peerage Act on the day it received the Royal Assent in 1963.-Early years:John Grigg was the son of Edward Grigg, a Times journalist...
to describe the King's behaviour in associating himself so prominently with a politician as "the most unconstitutional act by a British sovereign in the present century". However, historians have also argued that the King only ever followed ministerial advice and acted as he was constitutionally bound to do. In 1945, Churchill was invited onto the balcony in a similar gesture.
During the 1939 Royal Tour of North America,
U.S. First LadyFirst Lady of the United States is the title of the hostess of the White House. Because this position is traditionally filled by the wife of the President of the United States, the title is most often applied to the wife of a sitting president...
Eleanor RooseveltAnna Eleanor Roosevelt was the First Lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945. She supported the New Deal policies of her husband, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and assumed a role as an advocate for civil rights...
said that Elizabeth was "a little self-consciously regal". During a visit to London in 1948 she observed, "[Elizabeth and her family] are nice people but so far removed from real life, it seems."
Kitty KelleyKitty Kelley is an American investigative journalist and author of several best-selling unauthorized biographies of celebrities and politicians. Described as a "poison pen" biographer, her profiles frequently contain unflattering personal anecdotes and details, and their accuracy is often questioned...
, a controversial writer, and others have alleged that during
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Elizabeth did not abide by the rationing regulations to which the rest of the population was subject. However, this point is contradicted by the official records; Eleanor Roosevelt during her stay at Buckingham Palace during the war reported expressly on the rationed food served in the Palace and the limited bathwater that was permitted.
Kelley also alleged that Elizabeth used racist slurs to refer to black people, a claim strongly denied by Major Colin Burgess. Major Burgess was the husband of Elizabeth Burgess, a mixed-race secretary who accused members of the Prince of Wales's Household of racial abuse. Queen Elizabeth made no public comments on race, but according to
Robert Rhodes JamesSir Robert Vidal Rhodes James was a British historian and Conservative Member of Parliament. He was born in India and began his education in private schools there, returning to England to attend Sedbergh School and then Worcester College, Oxford.He wrote his first book, a much-acclaimed biography...
in private she "abhorred racial discrimination" and decried apartheid as "dreadful".
Woodrow WyattWoodrow Lyle Wyatt, Baron Wyatt of Weeford , was a British politician, published author, journalist and broadcaster.-Early life :...
records in his diary that when he expressed the view that non-white countries have nothing in common with "us", she told him, "I am very keen on the
CommonwealthThe Commonwealth of Nations, often referred to as the Commonwealth and previously as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-three independent member states. Most of them were formerly part of the British Empire. They co-operate within a framework of common values...
. They're all like us." However, she did distrust Germans; she told Woodrow Wyatt, "Never trust them, never trust them." While she may have held such views, it has been argued that they were normal for British people of her generation and upbringing, who had experienced two vicious wars with Germany.
Her political views were never publicly disclosed, though a letter she wrote in 1947 described
LabourThe Labour Party is a centre-left political party in the United Kingdom. Founded at the start of the 20th century, it has been seen since 1920 as the principal party of the Left in England, Scotland and Wales, but not Northern Ireland, where it has only recently begun to organise again...
Prime Minister
Clement AttleeClement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee, KG, OM, CH, PC, FRS was a British Labour politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951, and as Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955...
's "high hopes of a
socialistSocialism refers to various theories of economic organization advocating public or direct worker ownership and administration of the means of production and allocation of resources, and a society characterized by equal access to resources for all individuals with a method of compensation based on...
heaven on earth" as fading and presumably describes those who voted for him as "poor people, so many half-educated and bemused. I do love them." She told the
Duchess of Grafton Fortune FitzRoy, Duchess of Grafton GCVO was born Ann Fortune Smith, the daughter of Captain Evan Cadogan Eric Smith, born in 1894, and his wife Beatrice Helen Williams, married in 1917...
, "I love
communistsCommunism is a socioeconomic structure and political ideology that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless society based on common ownership and control of the means of production and property in general. Karl Marx posited that communism would be the final stage in human...
". Woodrow Wyatt thought her "much more pro Conservative than the Queen or the Prince of Wales" but she later told him, "I like the dear old Labour Party."
In 1987, she was criticised when it emerged that two of her nieces,
Katherine Bowes-LyonKatherine Bowes-Lyon is a niece of the late Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and a first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II. Her parents were the Hon. John Herbert Bowes-Lyon and the Hon. Fenella Hepburn-Stuart-Forbes-Trefusis...
and
Nerissa Bowes-LyonNerissa Jane Irene Bowes-Lyon was a niece of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and a first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II. The Bowes-Lyon informed Burke's Peerage that she had died in 1940. When it became apparent that this was not the case the editor of the book responded, "if that is what members...
, had both been committed to a
psychiatric hospitalA psychiatric hospital, sometimes known as an asylum, is a hospital specializing in the treatment of serious mental illness, usually for relatively long-term inpatients....
because they were severely handicapped. However,
Burke's PeerageBurke's Peerage publishes authoritative, in-depth historical guides to the titled families of the United Kingdom, such as Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, and many other countries. Founded in 1826 by British genealogist John Burke Esquire, and continued by his son, Sir John Bernard Burke,...
had listed the sisters as dead, apparently because their mother, Fenella (the Queen Mother's sister-in-law), "was 'extremely vague' when it came to filling in forms and might not have completed the paperwork for the family entry correctly". When Nerissa had died the year before, her grave was originally marked with a plastic tag and a serial number. The Queen Mother claimed that the news of their institutionalisation came as a surprise to her.
Legacy
Sir
Hugh CassonSir Hugh Maxwell Casson, KCVO, RA, RDI, was a British architect, interior designer, artist, and influential writer and broadcaster on 20th century design. He is particularly noted for his role as director of architecture at the 1951 Festival of Britain on London's South Bank.Casson's family...
described her vividly as like "a wave breaking on a rock, because although she is sweet and pretty and charming, she also has a basic streak of toughness and tenacity. ... when a wave breaks on a rock, it showers and sparkles with a brilliant play of foam and droplets in the sun, yet beneath is really hard, tough rock, fused, in her case, from strong principles, physical courage and a sense of duty."
Peter UstinovSir Peter Alexander Ustinov, CBE , was a British actor, writer and dramatist.He was also renowned as a filmmaker, theatre and opera director, director, stage designer, screenwriter, comedian, humorist, newspaper and magazine columnist, radio broadcaster and television presenter.A noted wit and...
described her during a student demonstration in 1968, "As we arrived in a solemn procession the students pelted us with toilet rolls. They kept hold of one end, like streamers at a ball, and threw the other end. The Queen Mother stopped and picked these up as though somebody had misplaced them. [Returning them to the students she said,] 'Was this yours? Oh, could you take it?' And it was her sang-froid and her absolute refusal to be shocked by this, which immediately silenced all the students. She knows instinctively what to do on those occasions. She doesn't rise to being heckled at all; she just pretends it must be an oversight on the part of the people doing it. The way she reacted not only showed her presence of mind, but was so charming and so disarming, even to the most rabid element, that she brought peace to troubled waters."
Elizabeth maintained a serene image throughout her public engagements, except once, during the 1947 Royal Tour of
South AfricaThe Union of South Africa is the historic predecessor to the present-day state of the Republic of South Africa. It came into being on 31 May 1910 with the unity of the previously separate colonies of the Cape, Natal, Transvaal and the Orange Free State...
, when she rose from the royal carriage to beat an admirer about the head with her umbrella, having mistaken enthusiasm for hostility. Being a keen
anglerAngling is a method of fishing by means of an "angle" .The hook is usually attached by a line to a fishing rod. A bite indicator such as a float is sometimes used. The rod is usually fitted with a fishing reel that functions as a mechanism for storing, retrieving and paying out the line. The hook...
, she once calmly joked, after being rushed to hospital when a fish bone stuck in her throat, "The salmon have got their own back."
She was well-known for her dry witticisms. On hearing that
Edwina MountbattenEdwina Cynthia Annette Mountbatten, Countess Mountbatten of Burma, CI, GBE, DCVO was an English heiress, socialite, relief-worker, wife of Louis, Lord Mountbatten and last Vicereine of India.-Lineage and wealth:...
was buried at sea, she said: "Dear Edwina, she always liked to make a splash." Accompanied by the gay writer and wit Sir
Noël CowardSir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of Richmond upon Thames, London, Coward...
at a gala, she mounted a staircase lined with Guards. Noticing Coward's eyes flicker momentarily across the soldiers, she murmured to him: "I wouldn't if I were you, Noël; they count them before they put them out." After being advised by a
ConservativeThe Conservative and Unionist Party, more commonly known as the Conservatives, the Conservative Party, or Tory Party is a conservative political party in the United Kingdom...
Minister in the 1970s not to employ
homosexualsHomosexuality is the romantic or sexual attraction or behavior among members of the same sex, situationally or as an enduring disposition. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is considered to lie within the heterosexual-homosexual continuum of human sexuality, and refers to an individual’s...
, the Queen Mother observed that without them, "we'd have to go self-service". On the fate of a gift of a nebuchadnezzar of champagne (20 bottles' worth) even if her family didn't come for the holidays, she said, "I'll polish it off myself." Her extravagant lifestyle amused journalists, particularly when it was revealed she had a multi-million
poundThe pound sterling , often simply called the pound, is the currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands and British Antarctic Territory...
overdraft with Coutts Bank. Her habits were often parodied (with relative affection) by the satirical 1980s
televisionBritish television broadcasting started in 1936, and now has a collection of free and subscription services over a variety of distribution media, through which there are up to 600 channels for consumers as well as on-demand content. There are six main channel owners who are responsible for most...
programme
Spitting ImageSpitting Image was a British satirical puppet show which ran on the ITV television network from 1984 to 1996. It was produced by Spitting Image Productions for Central. The series was nominated for 10 BAFTA Awards, winning one, for editing, in 1989....
– which portrayed her with a
Birmingham accentBrummie is a colloquial term for the inhabitants, accent and dialect of Birmingham, England, as well as being a general adjective used to denote a connection with the city, locally called Brum...
(modelled on actress
Beryl ReidBeryl Elizabeth Reid, OBE was a British actress of stage and screen.-Early life:Born in Hereford, England, Reid was the daughter of Scottish parents and grew up in Manchester where she attended Withington and Levenshulme High Schools...
) and an ever-present copy of the
Racing PostThe Racing Post is a British daily horse racing, greyhound racing and sports betting newspaper, currently the only one appearing in print form. It was founded in April 1986 by Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum as a rival to the Sporting Life...
. She was portrayed by
Sylvia SymsSylvia Syms OBE is an English actress. She is probably best known for her roles in the films The Tamarind Seed, Ice Cold in Alex, No Trees in the Street and Woman in a Dressing Gown, and is remembered by most for her film works in the 1950s and 1960s but is still active in films, television and...
in the 2006 film,
The QueenThe Queen is a British-based drama film directed by Stephen Frears, written by Peter Morgan, and starring Helen Mirren as the title role, HM Queen Elizabeth II...
.
The Queen Mother left her entire estate to the Queen, except for some bequests to members of her staff. Her estate was estimated to be worth £70 million, including paintings,
Fabergé eggA Fabergé egg is any one of the thousands of jeweled eggs made by the House of Fabergé from 1885 through 1917. The majority of these were miniature ones that were popular gifts at Eastertide. They would be worn on a neck chain either singly or in groups....
s, jewellery, and horses. Eight years before her death, she had reportedly placed two-thirds of her money into
trustsIn common law legal systems, a trust is an arrangement whereby property is managed by one person for the benefit of another. A trust is created by a settlor , who entrusts some or all of his property to people of his choice...
, for the benefit of her great-grandchildren. The Queen Mother's most important pieces of art were transferred to the
Royal CollectionThe Royal Collection is the art collection of the British Royal Family. It is property of the monarch as sovereign, but is held in trust for her successors and the nation. It contains over 7,000 paintings, 40,000 watercolours and drawings, and about 150,000 old master prints, as well as...
by the Queen.
A statue of Queen Elizabeth at the George VI Memorial, off The Mall, London, was unveiled on 24 February 2009.
Titles and styles
Elizabeth held a number of different titles and styles throughout her life, as the daughter of an earl, through her husband, and eventually as consort to the sovereign of multiple states. In common practice, she was referred to most often as simply
The Queen or
Her Majesty. When in conversation, the practice was to initially address her as
Your Majesty and thereafter as
Ma'am.
Arms
The Queen Mother's coat of arms were the
Royal Coat of Arms of the United KingdomThe Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom is the official coat of arms of the British monarch, currently Queen Elizabeth II. These arms are used by the Queen in her official capacity as monarch, and are officially known as her Arms of Dominion...
(in either the English or the Scottish version)
impaledIn heraldry, Impalement is the practice of joining two coats of arms side-by-side in one shield. Per pale is a vertical division in heraldry, and an impaled shield is divided straight down the middle vertically, top to bottom, with the two coats of arms arranged on each side of this...
with the arms of her father, the Earl of Strathmore; the latter being
1st and 4th quarters, argentIn heraldry, argent is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures, called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it...
, a lion rampant AzureIn heraldry, azure is the tincture with the colour blue, and belongs to the class of tinctures called "colours". In engraving, it is sometimes depicted as a region of horizontal lines or else marked with either az. or b. as an abbreviation....
, armed and langued gulesIn heraldry, gules is the tincture with the colour red, and belongs to the class of dark tinctures called "colours". In engraving, it is sometimes depicted as a region of vertical lines or else marked with gu. as an abbreviation....
, within a double tressure flory-counter-flory of the second (Lyon), 2nd and 3rd quarters, ermineErmine is a heraldic fur representing the winter coat of the stoat . Many skins would be sewn together to make a luxurious garment, producing a pattern of small black spots on a white field...
three bows, stringed paleways proper (Bowes).
Ancestry
External links