Royal Insight Forum

QuoteThe Great War broke out on her 14th birthday and during the horrific conflict she would lose one of her beloved brothers.
But despite her tender years the Queen Mother was determined to play her own part in the First World War at her Scottish childhood home.
Glamis in Angus was turned into a convalescent home for wounded soldiers and the then Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon would write letters for injured soldiers and run errands from the local shops for them.

How the Queen Mother did her bit during the Great War as a 14-year-old when her family's estate was turned into a convalescent home for wounded (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2625548/How-Queen-Mother-did-bit-Great-War-14-year-old-familys-estate-turned-convalescent-home-wounded-soldiers.html)

QuoteOn 12 May 1937 the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth was held on 12 May 1937 at Westminster Abbey. Originally this date was chosen for the coronation of Edward VIII before he decided to abdicate.

Preparing for the coronation began at 4am with guests arriving two hours later. According to Westminster Abbey, "many peers carrying sandwiches in their coronets."

The Procession of the Regalia began at 9.30 proceeding through the cloisters to the Abbey. Dating back to the time of Charles II, the crowns and regalia were taken to the Jerusalem Chamber, The Deanery of Westminster the night before.

More: History Rewind: Coronation of King George VI | Royal Central (http://www.royalcentral.co.uk/blogs/history-rewind-coronation-of-king-george-vi-29975)

A thread to discuss King George VI and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother


I believe he was a very brave and honourable man, and a good king. He died far too early.

Dressed in naval uniform, King George VI listened to the matron of Norwich Hospital give her account of the bombing of the hospital in October 1942.     :shake:

Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSoddUu1Djk)     
Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon was only The Honourable Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon when she was born in 1900.   
She did not become Lady Elizabeth until her father inherited the Earldom of Strathmore and Kinghorne in 1904.

Before her wedding, there was much speculation as to what Elizabeth would be known as following her marriage. George V's Private Secretary, Lord Stamfordham, believed that Lady Elizabeth would become Her Royal Highness The Duchess of York but that she would not be a princess.     
The Home Secretary consulted the legal experts and informed Lord Stamfordham that Lady Elizabeth would indeed become a princess as well as a Royal Highness. She would acquire her husband's rank, styles and titles in their entirety. She would be known as Her Royal Highness The Duchess of York. In reality she would actually become Her Royal Highness The Princess Albert, Duchess of York.

Huh?  Sounds pretty odd that lord S would think that Eliz would not be a princess.

The Queen Mother - 100 Years in 100 Minutes
The Queen Mother - 100 Years in 100 Minutes - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKCCF8Y5w4o)

                     1939 Canadian Royal Visit 
                           1939 CANADIAN ROYAL FAMILY VISIT of King George VI to Vancouver BC. - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ee4g7KEZ6W8)

                             Queen Mary and King George V of England in West Yorkshire   
                               King George V & Queen Mary Visit West Yorkshire (1915-1918) - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6tQggGowcU)

                     The Real King's Speech (George VI Stutter) - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1TubkzxPFY)

King George VI of Great Britain was not expected to reign as a monarch. In fact, he did not start out as George. Actually his parents gave him the name of Albert Frederick Arthur George.   
                    King George VI of the United Kingdom - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxQrkHUU7hc)

                  George VI was the last King-Emperor.   
                   George VI - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGxcuMMvS20)

A gentleman loaned me The Coronation of Their Majesties King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Official Souvenir Programme.     
Included was A Prayer for the King's Reign written by John Masefield, Poet Laureate.       
The Duke of Gloucester, Prince Henry wrote The Foreward.   
Details about the Coronation Procession were included.

QuoteMonarchy Rules: A Look at George VI

Early Life

Albert Frederick Arthur George was born as the second son to the then Prince George, Duke of York and Mary, Duchess of York on 14 December 1895 at York Cottage on the Sandringham Estate. He was born during the reign of Queen Victoria – his great-grandmother and was fourth in line to the throne after his grandfather, father, and older brother, Prince Edward.

As the young prince was born on the 34th anniversary of the death of his great-grandfather, Prince Albert, his grandfather, The Prince of Wales was concerned on how his mother would take the news. He decided to write to his son to suggest that they use the name 'Albert' for the new prince, as it would mean a lot to Victoria. Victoria would later write about how pleased she was to the Duchess of York saying, "I am all impatience to see the new one, born on such a sad day but rather more dear to me, especially as he will be called by that dear name which is a byword for all that is great and good."

Read more:
Monarchy Rules: A Look at George VI – Royal Central (http://royalcentral.co.uk/blogs/history/monarchy-rules-a-look-at-george-vi-62386)

                             The crown is placed upon George VI's head   
                               King George VI Coronation, Special Release! 1937/5/18 - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KUKZ5y_Yss)

Recognizing that she could count on and confide in Albert (George VI), The Duke of York was an important step in the development of Lady Elizabeth and Albert's relationship.   
At Christmas 1921 Albert gave Elizabeth a little clock along with a photograph of himself. He received a charming thank you note.   
:brr: :brr: :brr: :brr: :brr: :xmas18: :xmas18: :xmas18: :xmas18:

When the Women's Land Army was formed in 1939, Queen Elizabeth became Patron.

Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon and her parents, Claude and Cecilia went to Sandringham on the Saturday following the announcement of her engagement to Prince Albert. The first person Elizabeth met was Queen Alexandra, King George V's mother. Alexandra's daughter, Princess Victoria, whom Elizabeth was meeting properly for the first time, was curious to see her future niece by marriage.

During the Second World War, Queen Elizabeth went about her public engagements bedecked in couture suits from Norman Hartnell. When Elizabeth was asked if she did not consider it inappropriate for her to be seen in such finery at a time of such need, she replied that the people had come to see her and she was returning the compliment by putting on the best.

With so many troops fighting abroad and with so many having lost their lives, King George VI's Christmas Day broadcast to the nation in 1944 was especially poignant.     
:xmas5: :xmas5: :xmas5: :xmas5:

I found this movie called "Bertie & Elizabeth" from 2002. I never seen it before, but I am going to watch it and post my review later on. It's in 11 parts on youtube. Here they are:

Bertie & Elizabeth - 1 of 11 - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALCnTeqpP0g)
Bertie & Elizabeth 2 of 11 - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14faolLSIQY)
Bertie & Elizabeth - 3 of 11 - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwgEHVHqnSQ)
Bertie & Elizabeth - 4 of 11 - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cH9BWdUeAl0)
Bertie & Elizabeth - 5 of 11 - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EaBq1rKtLT8)
Bertie & Elizabeth - 6 of 11 - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAIs1C_ANQY)
Bertie & Elizabeth - 7 of 11 - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVacpUeJ0dA)
Bertie & Elizabeth - 8 of 11 - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uf4nn7laW_4)
Bertie & Elizabeth - 9 of 11 - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwK28QZ9rUo)
Bertie & Elizabeth - 10 of 11 - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eux2Aucpwf0)
Bertie & Elizabeth - 11 of 11 - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91UYdCeEiBE)

Queen Mother Elizabeth had her 80th birthday ceremony at St. Paul's Cathedral in 1980.   
Queen Mother's 80th Birthday Ceremony At St Paul's Cathedral - No Sound - 1980 - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyAWYDoRicA)

The title of the future Duchess of York caused some uncertainty. The Press Association reported that this was a matter for the King's decision. The Press Association indicated that the recent times supplied no precedent. The problem was that most royal wives had already been princesses by birth when they married. Would Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon be a princess after her wedding? The Home Office suggested that she definitely would.

Did Queen Elizabeth rack up $8 million in debt?
How Did the Queen Mother Rack Up $8 Million in Debt? - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5M3zrltqZjY)

Now there is a woman that knew how to behave like a queen. If your daughter is QEII, overdrafts do not matter. All her debts were paid off by her family.

1946 Maundy Service Maundy Money Service (1946) - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1WuyyA5b0w)     
This is a nice service showing a happy King George VI and Queen Consort Elizabeth. I like how the little girls hold their bouquets near Queen Elizabeth.

Queen Elizabeth opened the King George VI memorial center in Southern Rhodesia in 1957.   
Queen Mother In Bulawayo (1957) - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VU7-GVP2I1E)

Queen Elizabeth unveiled a royal naval memorial in Portsmouth in 1953.   
Portsmouth - Queen Mother Unveils Memorial Aka Queen Mother Unveils Royal Naval Memorial (1953) - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JARDFaeAlY0)

In 1996 The Queen Mother created The Queen Elizabeth Castle of Mey Trust so that Mey Castle could continue in perpetuity for the benefit of the people of Caithness.

Queen Elizabeth opened Queen Elizabeth Hospital in 1948.   
Queen Mother Opens Queen Elizabeth Hospital - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com./watch?v=AaeFXCDafNY)

In February 1928, Albert and Elizabeth, the Duke and Duchess of York, attended the Salvation Army Composers' Festival at the Congress Hall, Linscott Road in Clapton.

In 1939, after their visit to Washington, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth headed for New York, where the Governor, Herbert Lehman, and the Mayor, Fiorella La Guardia accompanied them as they were treated to a ticker tape parade.     

During the Second World War, Queen Elizabeth refused to flee England to seek safety for herself and her children. She declared, "I could not possibly leave the King, and the King will never go."

In July 1932 Albert and Elizabeth, the Duke and Duchess of York, attended the Royal Show in South Hampton. Elizabeth was introduced to members of the council. The Royal couple also opened a new civic center.

Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon was the daughter of the Earl and Countess of Strathmore. Would you say that her background of high position and privilege was good training for her role of Queen Consort?

I don't know about 'high position and privilege'. Makes Elizabeth sound as if she and her family lived a semi-Royal life. In fact the Strathmores lived a very simple life for aristocrats (very warm, loving, informal and jokey, one of the reasons why the Duke of York loved it) and all in all aristocratic families like theirs were often in financial difficulties after WW1.

It's true that after one of Elizabeth's brothers was killed and another a POW for years the Countess's mental health was somewhat fragile and so Elizabeth as the only daughter at home took over much of the arranging of any house parties, dances, parties, etc., but learning about that was very much part of girls' training for marriage in the upper classes in those days, anyway.

The Yorks lived a pretty normal life for one of their class and time after marriage, with less staff than some. Elizabeth once remembered that their footman had to be sent to the house of a neighbouring Duke in order to be trained in all the details of life as a servant in a grand household.

She certainly had more experience as a hostess and in the arts of social conversation etc than say Diana did but that was due to the period and time in which she had been born. That way of life was practically dead except in a few households by the 1970s.

 Good points @Curryong as WWI and WWII certainly had a large impact on lives and households of the aristocracy and the people that were typically employed by the estates. We know that the UK like many generations suffered terrible losses among the young men of military conscription age.  As modern household appliances and technology greatly reduced the need for large numbers of staff and more women chose to find employment in factories, offices and in fields that had been traditionally occupied by men along with the financial difficulties faced by so many members of the aristocracy, few households were living lives like their Victorian and Edwardian ancestors.

The Strathmores and Spencers like so many of their aristocratic peers lived different lives than the Windsors, so I'm not sure if Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyons and Lady Diana Spencer were prepared for the lives of future Queen Consorts because of their backgrounds of "high position and privilege."

From my impression, it was the humor, warmth and graciousness that both women possessed that inspired many in the UK to consider them their favorite members of the BRF during their lifetimes. :happy:

Quote from: TLLK on April 10, 2020, 09:48:05 PM
Good points @Curryong as WWI and WWII certainly had a large impact on lives and households of the aristocracy and the people that were typically employed by the estates. We know that the UK like many generations suffered terrible losses among the young men of military conscription age.  As modern household appliances and technology greatly reduced the need for large numbers of staff and more women chose to find employment in factories, offices and in fields that had been traditionally occupied by men along with the financial difficulties faced by so many members of the aristocracy, few households were living lives like their Victorian and Edwardian ancestors.

The Strathmores and Spencers like so many of their aristocratic peers lived different lives than the Windsors, so I'm not sure if Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyons and Lady Diana Spencer were prepared for the lives of future Queen Consorts because of their backgrounds of "high position and privilege."

From my impression, it was the humor, warmth and graciousness that both women possessed that inspired many in the UK to consider them their favorite members of the BRF during their lifetimes. :happy:

however they were part of the upper class that socialised with the RF, the Spencers had been courtiers, so they had an in to the RF....

Quote from: QueenAlex on April 10, 2020, 10:23:18 PM
however they were part of the upper class that socialised with the RF, the Spencers had been courtiers, so they had an in to the RF....

Yes, the fact that both grandmothers were/had been ladies in waiting to the QM was considered part of why Diana was considered eminently suitable.

However, as we've discussed, by the time Diana was in her late teens Johnnie her father had been a recluse following the breakdown of his first marriage then married Raine, considered a bolter, and there was not much interaction at all between the family and the RF, with the exception of Sarah's brief romance with Charles and Ruth Fermoy's deep friendship with the QM. The latter would have been great had Ruth been very close to her granddaughter, but she wasn't.

And Diana hadn't been to finishing school or taken note of how Raine managed social events at Althorp. She wasn't alone in that in her generation of aristo daughters though.

King George VI with the Royal Family at the Royal Lodge at Windsor Castle July 8, 1946   
George VI with the Royal Family, at the Royal Lodge at Windsor Castle. News Photo - Getty Images (http://www.gettyimages.com/license/3094375)

Quote from: TLLK on April 10, 2020, 09:48:05 PM
Good points @Curryong as WWI and WWII certainly had a large impact on lives and households of the aristocracy and the people that were typically employed by the estates. We know that the UK like many generations suffered terrible losses among the young men of military conscription age.  As modern household appliances and technology greatly reduced the need for large numbers of staff and more women chose to find employment in factories, offices and in fields that had been traditionally occupied by men along with the financial difficulties faced by so many members of the aristocracy, few households were living lives like their Victorian and Edwardian ancestors.

The Strathmores and Spencers like so many of their aristocratic peers lived different lives than the Windsors, so I'm not sure if Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyons and Lady Diana Spencer were prepared for the lives of future Queen Consorts because of their backgrounds of "high position and privilege."

From my impression, it was the humor, warmth and graciousness that both women possessed that inspired many in the UK to consider them their favorite members of the BRF during their lifetimes. :happy:

I think that the QM did learn about managing a house and social life as most upper class daughters did in the 20s...  Diana didn't. 

Elizabeth, when she was Duchess of York, wrote her mother-in-law Queen Mary letters about how much she loved her new home, White Lodge. However, she bemoaned to her mother Cecilia how hideous she found it.

President and Mamie Eisenhower at the White House in 1954   
President and Mamie Eisenhower welcome Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Stock Photo - Alamy (http://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-president-and-mamie-eisenhower-welcome-queen-elizabeth-the-queen-mother-87527339.html)

King George VI and Queen Elizabeth attended church in Hertforshire in 1937.     
King George VI and Queen Elizabeth attend Church in Hertfordshire (1937) - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoE7FwjH6cg)

In February 1928 Albert and Elizabeth, The Duke and Duchess of York, attended the Salvation Army Composers' Festival at the Congress Hall, Linscott Road, Clapton.

What made Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon acceptable to Queen Mary was that she possessed royal blood. She was descended from King Robert II of Scotland. She was not just an aristocrat. She was an aristocrat of Royal descent.

Prince Albert, The Duke of York sent Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon a box for Christmas in 1920. By January 1921 he was courting her.   

When Elizabeth was born in 1900, she was not Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon. Her father Claude was Lord Glamis. He did not become Earl of Strathmore until 1904.   

The coronation procession of King George VI of England on May 12, 1937 was more than 9.6 kilometres long. This made it the longest coronation procession up to that time.

Quote from: LouisFerdinand on April 01, 2021, 10:16:56 PM
What made Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon acceptable to Queen Mary was that she possessed royal blood. She was descended from King Robert II of Scotland. She was not just an aristocrat. She was an aristocrat of Royal descent.

Many aristrocrats had royal blood. And George V had said after the war that he was OK with his children marrying into the British aristocracy rather than seeking royal parnters abroad.

Quote from: Amabel2 on December 18, 2022, 04:54:42 PM
Many aristrocrats had royal blood. And George V had said after the war that he was OK with his children marrying into the British aristocracy rather than seeking royal parnters abroad.

Well exactly! A lot of aristocrats, including some who married into the royal family in the last fifty years have royal blood, many from Charles II who had many mistresses who bore illegitimate sons. The First World War changed everything. The German royal houses (from which many royal brides had come over the centuries) was no longer available due to bad feeling over Britain and the Empire?s war dead. No Romanov bride would be really acceptable either, and the survivors were all scattered anyway. There were plenty of young upper class British women around and that was the class George V?s sons mixed with socially.

  As did his only daughter, admittedly to a much lesser extent. I?m not sure about the sons but I do have a feeling that if there had been no war and tensions had eased that the Princess Royal might have ended up with one of Kaiser Bill?s younger sons, or a young man from a non-Hohenzollern royal family.

or perhaps with social changes, which might have taken place naturally, the King woudl have been ok iwht his children marrying British aristocrats

Queen Elizabeth visited Queen Alexandra Veteran's Retirement Home, Gifford House, Worthing   
Mary Evans Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother 13265729 (http://www.maryevans.com/history/13265729)