REAL HISTORY OF THE CROWN Fifth Edition 2021

Love won and lost

LOVE WON
AND LOST

Under the ever-watchful eye of the press, one
member of the royal family wasn’t shy about

broken hearts and having fun

Words by Katharine Marsh

I would like it to be known that I have with illustrious figures like the Marquess of was always the second-in-line. She was the second
decided not to marry Group Captain Peter Blandford and Billy Wallace, the son of the child, the youngest, and when her father became
Townsend.” With a simple sentence, it was minister for transport, forming part of the group. king, it was Elizabeth who had received the
all over. Years of stolen moments, furtive attention as the heir to the throne. Elizabeth had
glances and falling in love ended in a In the mornings, Margaret wouldn’t rise until received an education that Margaret had sorely
heartbeat on 31 October 1955. Margaret and her 11am, when she’d have a pot of weak tea and pick wanted. Elizabeth was allowed to serve on a
father’s equerry had enjoyed a whirlwind from a plate of fruit. After a bath, she’d be at her Council of State aged just 18, while Margaret had
relationship – they had come so close to marriage, desk at around 12.30pm, answering to wait until she was 21. Margaret was trying to
but the princess would have lost everything. correspondence from friends – she’d always know rebel, but in doing so she had to walk a fine line
which letters were theirs thanks to their initials between party girl and princess.
Instead she let Peter go, but the damage had on the bottom left-hand corner of the envelopes.
already been done with the press. While her older But as Margaret’s party days made headlines
sister was the Queen, the epitome of grace and Lunch was spent with her mother and around the world and she stood dutifully with her
honour, the wilder Margaret, so eager to marry a members of the royal household, and the tensions mother and sister when required, the real
divorced man, had shown that was prepared to were clear to see. Margaret was apparently question the press wanted answering was who
push the boundaries usually obeyed by the royal sometimes rude to the Queen Mother, and once would she marry? Endless rumours swirled
family, and the papers were ready for whatever asked her, “Why do you dress in those ridiculous around Fleet Street, with close friends and the
came next. clothes?” Later on in the day while watching sons of powerful men considered to be the next in
television, she would also switch to another line to propose to the princess. Various names
Margaret was quick to recover herself, and she channel if she wasn’t enjoying what her mother were bandied about – Colin Tennant, Sunny
formed what has come to be known as the was watching. The Queen Mother never said Blandford, Dominic Elliot. Who would finally
‘Margaret Set’. Night after night they would attend anything to her, though, instead apparently sweep her off her feet?
the theatre, dine at restaurants and stay up until showing her frustration in “the way she moved a
the early hours at nightclubs across London, book, a piece of furniture or a glass,” according to In 1956, the world seemed close to getting its
smoking endless cigarettes and drinking her page William Tallon. answer. Seemingly fed up, a year after the end of
seemingly bottomless tumblers of whisky. The her engagement to Townsend, Margaret declared
London society scene of the 1950s was theirs, Some have come to the conclusion that that it was better to marry “somebody one at least
Margaret’s attitude was down to the fact that she

101

Margaret and Tony pose with
their children, David and Sarah

liked” than living her life alone at Clarence House. Margaret wasn’t just loved by the British press. Here she the situation more if he’d tried and Margaret
While her mother also resided there, the doors to is on the cover of Italian weekly magazine Epoca quickly broke the relationship off, unwilling to go
their suites were on different floors – if it wasn’t through with the arrangement if he couldn’t at
for their lunches, they could have gone days least remain loyal. He would later find love in
without seeing each other. Elizabeth Hoyer Millar, and they married in 1965
with Margaret in attendance.
The someone Margaret liked turned out to be
Billy Wallace, a member of her inner circle and the But for now, Margaret was alone again. The list
son of Euan Wallace, a late former minister of of suitors grew, with Margaret being connected to
transport who had left him with a small fortune. more and more men. We don’t know if any of the
Unlike the princess’s first paramour, he wasn’t rumours were grounded in truth – perhaps we
divorced, he wasn’t in the employ of the royal never will – but newspapers and tabloids keenly
family, and his family was of good standing in kept up-to-date with the princess’s social life.
society. He was everything the suitor of a queen’s While Elizabeth was demure and regal, Margaret
sister should be. Margaret said yes when he was glamorous and sparkling, every bit the
proposed – why wouldn’t she? – and they were socialite. But for all their theorising and
sure that they would get Elizabeth’s approval. speculating, one man slipped under the radar of
Perhaps this would be Margaret’s happy ending every single journalist. Without anyone knowing,
after all the heartbreak. he wormed his way into the heart of the poised
and stylish princess.
Margaret and Billy’s engagement didn’t even
make it to the newspapers. Before officially asking Antony ‘Tony’ Armstrong-Jones was a
the Queen for permission, Billy went on holiday to photographer, and a very good one at that. His
the Bahamas and had a holiday fling. When he parents – a barrister and a society hostess – had
returned to London, he told Margaret, thinking split when he was five, with his mother becoming
that nothing could end their engagement – they the Countess of Rosse when she remarried. Tony’s
were friends, after all. Billy couldn’t have misread childhood has been described as loveless and

102

Love won and lost

Margaret and Tony in The
the Bahamas in 1967 Margaret Set

“THERE WAS MORE TO Meet some of the members of
TONY. HE WAS A REBEL, the high society group

A BOHEMIAN” Colin
Tennant
emotionally charged, and that doesn’t seem to whole new world, and her family viewed him as Images © Getty. Associated Newsapers, Shutterstock
have been far from the truth. When he contracted nothing but a ‘humble tradesman’ because of his An Old Etonian, Colin was
polio as a child, he spent six months in hospital profession. Anything to wind them up was a plus. the son of the second
and the only family who came to visit him was Baron Glenconner. There
his sister Susan. His education took him to Eton But there was more to Tony. He himself was a was much speculation that
College and Cambridge University, although he rebel, a bohemian living through the 1950s, before he was in a relationship
failed his second-year exams in architecture. the sexual revolution gripped the world. At first with Margaret, which
Margaret hadn’t even considered him a potential he later downplayed by
It’s unclear how Tony and Margaret first met. match, instead thinking that he was gay, but she claiming, “I don’t expect
Some say that Tony had been a royal wasn’t actually that far from the truth. It has she would have had me.”
photographer at Buckingham Palace when they become well known that Tony was bisexual, and it
first laid eyes on each other, while others claim was in a time when homosexuality was Sunny
that the pair met at a dinner party in Chelsea in considered illegal in the United Kingdom. Blandford
1958. The princess was apparently drawn in by his
impish smile and his sense of mischief – he In the late 1950s, Tony’s libido never seemed to Part of the Spencer-
seemed to complement Margaret. And for a royal be satisfied. While he began to romance Margaret, Churchill family and heir to
who wanted to rebel, Tony seemed like the perfect men and women would frequent his studio, and the duchy of Marlborough,
choice; here was a man who could show her a not all of them were visiting solely for Sunny (nicknamed for
photography. Affairs were carried out with Jacqui his courtesy title of
Earl of Sunderland was
considered one of the
most likely to marry
Princess Margaret.

Billy
Wallace

Briefly engaged to the
princess, Billy was the
grandson of architect Sir
Edwin Lutyens. Educated
at Eton and Oxford, he
later married the Hon.
Elizabeth Millar. He died
just a few days before his
fiftieth birthday.

Dominic
Elliot

The son of the Earl of
Minto, Dominic spent
many an evening in
London with Margaret.
Despite rumours of a
relationship with the
princess, he went on to
marry twice, in 1962 and
later 1983.

Mark
Bonham
Carter

Son of Liberal activists
and a member of the
prominent Bonham Carter
family, Mark was part of
the Margaret Set before
his marriage in 1955 to
Leslie, Lady St Just. He
died in 1994.

103

Chan, a dancer who is often considered to have Margaret often headed to her villa
been Tony’s first real girlfriend, and Gina Ward, an in Mustique to spend time away
actress. But that wasn’t where the relationships from her husband
stopped. It’s difficult to prove, but some have
suggested that Tony was part of a scandalous “AS ALWAYS WITH MARGARET,
open relationship with two of his married friends, PROBLEMS WEREN’T FAR AWAY”
Jeremy and Camilla Fry.
the engagement in February 1960, she had to wait background. No journalist had so much as glanced
It’s unclear how much of this Margaret knew at – her sister, the Queen, the one who always came his way; he wasn’t an eligible bachelor, and
the time. Was she aware that in the same terrace first, had given birth to Prince Andrew on the certainly not a man who would catch the eye of
house in Bermondsey where she was perhaps 19th, and the betrothal couldn’t be made public for the Queen’s sister. And there hadn’t even been any
falling in love, Tony was sleeping with other fear of upstaging her. Finally, on 26 February, mention of the couple being romantically involved
women? That he was conducting affairs right up Margaret got her moment. She told the world she before the announcement.
until 1959? He was incredibly secretive, so it’s was getting married, and the big day was 6 May.
likely that the princess didn’t have an inkling. Congratulations flew in from around the world,
The media and the country were shocked – no but hidden among them were warnings. Lady
Margaret was enthralled, enraptured by this one had seen this coming. At every party, every Elizabeth Cavendish told Margaret, “You won’t
bohemian man who didn’t shy away from her. public event, Tony had managed to fade into the always know where he is and he won’t always
When taking her portraits, he was able to get her
to change her clothes, her position – no one had
ever really managed to tell her what to do before.
He oozed charisma, and he was a challenge.
Margaret had never really had a challenge before;
it was new, exciting.

Then in October 1959, while the couple were
visiting Balmoral Castle, a letter arrived. It was
from Townsend, and it could have been better
news – he was announcing his engagement. The
bride-to-be was Marie-Luce Jamagne, a 19-year-old
Belgian who bore a striking resemblance to the
princess. The press would have a field day. But
Margaret wanted to prove that she was over him,
that she had left their relationship behind and
moved on. She encouraged Tony not to propose so
that there could be no reports of her being
desperate or wanting to get one up on her
ex-fiancé and his new flame.

But a proposal was coming. Over Christmas that
year, Tony asked for the Queen’s permission, and
Elizabeth was eager to give it and to see her sister
happy. The ring, a large ruby, cost £250 and had
been designed by Tony himself to look like a
rosebud. When Tony gave it to the princess, she
was delighted. She said yes.

As always with Margaret, problems weren’t far
away. When she was ready to officially announce

Working for Margaret

What was it really like to serve the princess?

Being in the employ of the royal family could go and join the fun. Her younger Clarence House, home to Princess Margaret before her marriage
was something one aimed for – especially daughter, on the other hand, would hold
being a member of the household staff of a dinner party, keeping her staff on the
the monarch or one of her close relatives. clock. When at lunch with her mother, she
People relished the chance to work for the would also be rude and dismissive to her
Queen and the Queen Mother, and even mother’s household staff.
Princess Margaret, although at times it’s
hard to see why. One royal servant, Peter Russel, who
served the royal family from 1954 to 1968,
Margaret could be notoriously unfair to claims that at banquets someone would
her staff. Each year, Buckingham Palace have to stand next to Margaret holding an
held a Christmas party that the staff of ashtray “so she didn’t have to look to see
Clarence House were invited to, and the where she flicked her ash”. Working for
Queen Mother would either dine out or Margaret wasn’t necessarily the dream job
have a light meal so that her household everyone thought it was.

104

Love won and lost

It may have looked like a fairytale, but the magic
wasn’t to last, as Margaret and Tony’s relationship
devolved into affairs, recriminations and divorce

want to tell you.” Lord de Vesci, Tony’s brother-in- royal wedding to be broadcast on television, and hadn’t been his first choice. The position had Images © Getty / Shutterstock
law, meanwhile, bluntly said, “Tony, for God’s sake, 300 million people tuned in around the world. It belonged to Jeremy Fry until it was revealed that
don’t.” None of the advice was heeded. Tony had had to be decadent, like something out of a fairy he had a criminal conviction from 1952 as a result
already broken off his other affairs, and he was tale, and Margaret made sure that it was, to the of ‘homosexual acts’. It simply wouldn’t do to have
now all Margaret’s. cost of £86,000. 2,000 guests waited in scandal at the wedding, so he was replaced. The
Westminster Abbey, and they included Winston wedding breakfast was at Buckingham Palace, and
When 6 May came around, no expense had Churchill, European royalty, and some of the the newlyweds stepped out onto the balcony to
been spared. The ceremony was the first British greet the well wishers who lined the Mall. Inside
leading film stars of the 1950s. the palace were 20 wedding cakes and a 60-foot
A ticket to the wedding procession Her dress was made from silk organza and floral arch – no expense had been spared. And
of Margaret and Tony married life seemed to suit the couple. Their six-
designed by Norman Hartnell, who had week honeymoon was spent on the Royal Yacht
created Elizabeth’s wedding gown in 1947. The Britannia, and they returned to live at Kensington
skirt alone was made of 30 metres of fabric, Palace. Later that year they became the Earl and
and she parted with tradition by wearing the Countess of Snowdon, and Tony took the title of
Poltimore tiara rather than a headpiece from Viscount Linley; the 1960s were off to a great start
the Crown Jewel collection. She was always for both of them. But soon after the happy couple
going to have something different – something had tied the knot, Camilla Fry gave birth to a baby
that showed she’d stamped her own mark on girl. While she was married, her claim was that
the day. Jeremy wasn’t the child’s father – according to her,
it was Tony. Camilla never went public with her
After making the journey to the Abbey from claim, and the girl, Polly, was raised believing that
Clarence House in the Glass Coach, Margaret Jeremy was her father. Tony didn’t take a DNA test
walked the aisle with her brother-in-law, the until 2004, when his paternity was confirmed. As
Duke of Edinburgh, to meet her soon-to-be
husband at the altar. There he stood,
alongside his best man – but Roger Gilliat

105

always with the royals, it’s unclear how much the

royal family knew about this.

Life was different for the married couple. Tony

had to switch his jeans and leather jackets for

well-cut suits, and he was made to switch to

British cigarettes. But one thing he wouldn’t

change was his career – photography was his

passion, and he wasn’t going to let it go. On 23

January 1961, he joined the Council of Industrial

Design as an unpaid designer, and more good

news was on the way: Margaret was pregnant.

David Albert Charles was born on 3 November,

and he was christened in December at

Buckingham Palace. One child turned into two

when the countess gave birth to a girl, Sarah

Frances Elizabeth, on 1 May 1964.

All the while, Apartment 1A, Kensington Palace,

was turning into a society hotspot. An invitation

to a party or dinner there was highly sought after

in an age where any invitation to royal events was

rare. Britain’s most glamorous couple played host

to the era’s most celebrated musicians, actors and

poets, and Margaret would often play the piano

and sing her favourite musical tracks to entertain

her guests.

But the wedded bliss wouldn’t last forever. As

the 1960s progressed, cracks started to appear in

their marriage. Tony was becoming ever more

immersed in his work, travelling around Britain The Earl and Countess of Snowdon were every inch the
and abroad. He was seen escorting young, country’s most glamorous couple, paving the way for royalty
attractive models, and Margaret was beginning to today. Here they are photographed with Elton John in 1972

get jealous. She became possessive, phoning him “HE BROUGHT PRESENTS FOR
to find out his whereabouts or appearing at his EVERYONE EXCEPT HIS WIFE”
studio. When Tony came home, he would lock
himself in his basement workroom and refuse his
wife’s insistences that he meet guests.

As time wore on, he started to become outright

cruel. When attending a party on the private “You look like a Jewish manicurist and I hate you.” tabloids had a field day, finding every angle on the

island of Spetsopoula, he told Margaret to wear a Arguments became more common. Margaret story of the beautiful, troubled princess and a

ball gown when everyone else was wearing jeans began spending time away at her villa on younger man who wasn’t her husband holidaying

and sandals, and he brought presents for everyone Mustique, which had been given to her as a in the West Indies together.

except his wife. He would belittle her in front of wedding present. Tony was having a string of There was only one course of action left open to

their friends, and he left nasty notes between the extramarital affairs and his wife was left Tony and Margaret: they announced their

pages of her books, with one apparently reading, wondering what went wrong. She’d married him separation. Tony apparently told Margaret’s

out of an act of rebellion – personal secretary that he was done, using the

he wasn’t a royal, he was a scandal as his excuse to get out. When she was

commoner – but it hadn’t told, Margaret is said to have replied, “Oh, I see.

turned out as she’d hoped. Thank you… I think that’s the best news you’ve

She was alone, attending ever given me.”

functions by herself as Tony But there was one more scandal for Margaret.

travelled the world. Finally, after two years of separation, the

By the late 1970s, the announcement was issued on 10 May 1978: “Her

marriage was falling apart. Royal Highness The Princess Margaret, Countess

Divorce seemed to be off of Snowdon, and the Earl of Snowdon, after two

the table – Princess years of separation, have agreed that their

Margaret was the sister of marriage should be formally ended.”

the Queen, after all – but it It was over. For the first time in 77 years, a

was clear that Margaret and senior royal was divorcing their partner. Margaret’s

Tony weren’t happy. It only reputation had been cemented, and, as she would

got worse when Margaret later say herself, “It was inevitable, when there are

took Roddy Llewllyn, who two sisters and one is the Queen, who must be the

was 17 years younger than source of honour and all that is good, while the

Throughout their marriage, Tony was often pictured with young, her, to Mustique in 1976. It other must be the focus of the most creative
attractive models, fuelling speculation that he was being unfaithful was a national scandal; the malice, the evil sister.”

106

Love won and lost

Image © Associated Newspapers / Shutterstock A princess

of the arts

Uncover Margaret’s love for art,
dance and fashion

For someone brought up in the strict world of royal
protocol, where not a hair can be out of place, art can
be a refuge. Paintings and sculptures can express things
in ways that words can’t, and that can draw in a viewer
that’s looking for creativity in a world full of stiffness.

Perhaps this was why Margaret loved art so much.
She could often be found at museums and galleries,
and it’s little wonder that she fell in love with a
photographer. In fact, Margaret was fascinated by
the new world she discovered through Tony. There
were actors, journalists, painters and poets, all with
more stories to tell than the last and with powerful
personalities to boot. Here was the vibrancy that she
had been looking for her whole life.

One of Margaret’s greatest loves was ballet, and she
became the first president of the Royal Ballet in 1957,
but she would always be known as the most fashionable
royal of her era. With a love for the extravagant, it was a
way for her to express her station above others in one of
the only ways she could while always having to remain
one step behind her elder sister.

Jacqui Chan, Tony’s long-term lover right up until
the announcement of his engagement to Margaret

Image © Daily Mail / Shutterstock
Images © Getty, Shutterstock
Princess Margaret often went out in Princess Margaret said of Picasso’s Woman’s Head,
London surrounded by male friends “Like it, loathe it, but admit… it’s eye-catching”

107

108

The princess
and the gangster

An unlikely guest to the exclusive island of Mustique, a quick
capture reveals Princess Margaret sitting next to a man she
claimed she never met: sometime actor and later murder
suspect John Bindon. A scheming social climber from humble
roots, Bindon claimed to have had a scandalous liaison with
the princess. After a raid on a Baker Street branch of Lloyds
Bank and an eventual gagging order issued by the government,
rumours of intimate photographs of Margaret being stolen from
a gangster’s safe deposit box captured the nation’s imagination.

The 2008 film The Bank Job plays on the mystery.

1960s

Images © Getty

109

© Getty Images

THE QUEEN AND THE

K E N N E DYS

In the summer of 1961, President Kennedy and his
wife paid a flying visit to London. But it wasn’t long

before nasty rumours spread about the event…

Words by Melanie Clegg

W hen John Fitzgerald Kennedy Jacqueline’s appearance and seemingly popularity prompted her husband to proudly, and
became the 35th President of unflappable poise – perhaps a reflection of all the with typical self-deprecation, refer to himself as
the United States in January time that she had spent overseas in Europe, “the man who accompanied Jacqueline Kennedy
1960, his presidency was seen especially France, which she adored. to Paris.”
as a breath of fresh air and the
beginning of a bright new era for his nation. Aged In 1953, shortly before becoming engaged to her When the Kennedys left France on 3 June, they
just 43, he was the youngest person ever to be husband, Jacqueline travelled to London in order headed to Vienna, where President Kennedy
elected president; his preppy good looks and to cover the Queen’s coronation for The attended a summit meeting with the Soviet
extraordinary charisma won him many fans Washington Times-Herald newspaper. She Premier Nikita Khrushchev. From Austria the
around the globe. interviewed members of the public who were couple travelled to England, where they would
waiting outside Buckingham Palace for a glimpse attend the christening of Jacqueline’s niece, the
His prestige was enhanced by the presence of of the royal family, and even asked if they thought daughter of her sister Lee, Princess Radziwill, who
his glamorous and obviously adoring wife Elizabeth II would be Britain’s last queen. lived in London.
Jacqueline at his side, always immaculately
dressed. In an age fascinated by celebrity, the In the early summer of 1961, the Kennedy This gruelling schedule may have been made
Kennedys were megastars on the international couple paid an official three-day visit to Paris, relatively less painful by the assistance of the
stage. The enigmatic and gorgeous Mrs Kennedy where they were welcomed by the French private physician Max Jacobson, nicknamed
became a huge celebrity in her own right, in a way President Charles de Gaulle and his wife. During Doctor Feelgood. Jacobson was known to
that no other previous First Lady ever had. In the their stay, which involved a lavish banquet at administer various regenerative cocktails of
early 1960s, Jacqueline Kennedy’s face graced Versailles, Jacqueline Kennedy was very much the vitamins, animal hormones, painkillers, steroids
countless magazine covers, while articles inside star of the show. She impressed the French with and amphetamines to a host of high-profile
dissected her classically elegant style. The First her sartorial flair and fluent command of their clients, including the Kennedys, who often felt the
Lady favoured neat shift dresses, immaculate language. Although everyone was keen to see the strain of their hectic lifestyle. The President in
white gloves, pillbox hats, simple pearl earrings handsome new American President – who was particular suffered from the effects of his
and that trademark bouffant hairstyle. There was such a striking contrast to the elderly male Addison’s disease and chronic back pain, which
something extremely chic and Parisian about politicians of Europe – it was Mrs Kennedy who left him exhausted, irritable and unable to
really drew the crowds. The First Lady’s concentrate. Although it’s known that Dr Jacobson

110

The Queen and the Kennedys

Although Jacqueline Kennedy was rumoured
to have been less than complimentary both
about the Queen and Buckingham Palace,
there was no sign of any animosity between
the two women when they first met

111

Before visiting London, the Kennedy couple had enjoyed a warm welcome
in Paris – a place especially dear to Jackie’s heart. In this photograph they
are standing with the French President, Charles de Gaulle

accompanied them to Paris and Vienna, ostensibly “THE QUEEN WAS KEEN
to treat the President’s back pains, there’s no TO MEET WITH THE NEW
evidence that he treated them during their stay in PRESIDENT AND FIRST LADY”
London. By the end of 1962, Kennedy had been
persuaded to stop seeing Jacobson after his usual certainly have held firm and refused to let the American Ambassador to the United Kingdom in
doctors expressed their concerns about the effect Radziwills attend if the visit had been a more 1938. The Kennedy siblings had attended royal
of amphetamines and steroids upon the official state one. functions on more than one occasion, including
President’s cognitive abilities. the presentations of the two eldest sisters,
As Jacqueline Kennedy was well aware of the Rosemary and Kathleen, to George VI and Queen
Although this was nominally a private visit to controversy surrounding her sister’s invitation to Elizabeth. Although the young Princess Elizabeth
England, the trip had been arranged so that the the dinner, she may have felt some animosity and JFK had not met during that time, not least
President could discreetly meet with the British towards the Queen before they had even met. She because he was nearly ten years older than her,
prime minister Harold Macmillan to discuss the certainly felt rather aggrieved when she heard that she had fond memories of his formidable mother.
ultimately unsatisfying summit with Khrushchev. her other two requested additions to the guest list Rose Kennedy made an impression on the young
The Queen was also keen to meet with the new had been declined. Mrs Kennedy no doubt felt Elizabeth and her sister Margaret by being
President and his First Lady, and so she extended that she would get along famously with both especially kind to them when they were mourning
an invitation to a banquet held in their honour at Princess Margaret and Princess Marina, the the death of a family member.
Buckingham Palace on the evening after the glamorous widowed Duchess of Kent, but neither
christening. The Kennedys were delighted to were invited. “The Queen had her revenge,” the Many of the Queen’s circle, particularly her
accept the invitation, but the first hurdle appeared First Lady later joked. “No Margaret, no Marina, no Mistress of the Robes, the Duchess of Devonshire,
almost immediately. one except every Commonwealth Minister of also remembered President Kennedy’s vivacious
Agriculture that they could find.” socialite sister Kathleen, known as ‘Kick’. She had
Jacqueline insisted that their London hosts – her married the Marquess of Hartington, heir of the
sister and brother-in-law, Prince Stanislaw Her husband was feeling far more laid back Duke of Devonshire, and might have one day
Radziwill – should also be invited to the event. about the whole affair. Unlike Jacqueline, he was become chatelaine of Chatsworth House – and
However, as both Lee and her husband had been no stranger to Buckingham Palace or royal circles. perhaps even Mistress of the Robes herself – had
divorced, old-fashioned etiquette rules dictated His father, Joseph Patrick Kennedy, took his family her young husband not been killed in action in
that they should not be allowed at state functions with him to London when he was appointed
at the palace. They weren’t on the guest list until
the Queen finally relented and invited them,
although she was very unwilling to do so. In the
opinion of Macmillan, the Queen would almost

112

The Queen and the Kennedys

If there had ever been tension between the two women, they had Jacqueline
very much put it behind them by the time Jacqueline attended the Kennedy
dedication of her late husband’s memorial in Runnymede, Surrey Onassis

1944, just three months after they were married. American guests when she welcomed them to The glamorous First Lady may Images © Getty
Four years later, Kick died in a plane crash in the Buckingham Palace for the evening. No expense have seemed destined to enjoy
south of France when she was just 28 years old. was spared in ensuring that the already dazzling a charmed existence, but her
She was buried alongside other members of her State Rooms looked their very best for the event. life was marred by a series of
husband’s family on the Chatsworth Estate in Conscious that Mrs Kennedy was universally
Derbyshire. President Kennedy would visit his considered to be one of the most stylish women personal tragedies
sister’s grave in 1963, just a few months before his on the planet, the Queen took particular care over
own tragic death later that year. her appearance. She opted for a blue tulle Born into an affluent Catholic New York family on 28
ballgown designed by Norman Hartnell, which she July 1929, Jacqueline Bouvier seemed destined for
Although it wasn’t an official state dinner, the wore with splendid diamond and sapphire pieces greatness from an early age due to her intelligence, good
Queen was nonetheless determined to impress her from her enormous jewellery collection (although looks and charm. After studying at Vassar College and
as it was not a state dinner, she did not wear a then at Sorbonne in Paris for a year, she graduated from
Keen to look her best when meeting the stylish First tiara). In contrast, Jacqueline Kennedy turned up George Washington University with a degree in French
Lady, the Queen wore this royal blue gown from her wearing a chic ice-blue silk evening gown from Literature. While working for the Washington Times-
favourite designer, Norman Hartnell Chez Ninon. The New York atelier produced copies Herald she met John Fitzgerald Kennedy at a dinner
of French couture, so the First Lady could wear party in May 1952. They married in September 1953 in a
the latest Parisian fashions without offending wedding that was hailed as the social event of the year.
patriotic Americans who believed she should only
wear clothes made in the United States. Jacqueline’s first pregnancy in 1955 ended in a
miscarriage, and a year later their daughter Arabella was
Afterwards, the society photographer Cecil stillborn. Caroline, her eldest surviving child, was born in
Beaton would claim that Jacqueline thought the November 1957, while her husband was campaigning for
Queen’s blue dress was dowdy and unfashionable re-election to the Senate. The couple’s second surviving
and her hair unflatteringly flat, but it’s unlikely child, John Jr, was born two weeks after JFK was elected
that these criticisms ever got back to the Palace. President of the United States.
Jacqueline and the Queen were close in age, both
being in their early 30s, but were very different in The youth and charisma of the Kennedy couple, as
temperament. This would perhaps explain why well as Jacqueline’s elegance, attracted a great deal of
Mrs Kennedy would later describe Queen attention which she often struggled to deal with. After
Elizabeth as “pretty hard going” and even suggest the death of their fourth child, Patrick, just two days
to the writer Gore Vidal that perhaps the monarch after he was born in August 1963, Jacqueline developed
“resented” her – although she didn’t expand to say depression. Following her husband’s assassination just
exactly why she thought this might be the case. three months later, she retired from public life and
Although the Queen was interested in clothes, she devoted herself to her children.

She found love again with old friend Aristotle Onassis,
a Greek shipping magnate, whom she married in 1968.
After Onassis’ death in 1975 she returned to work in
publishing as an editor. After a short battle with non-
Hodgkin lymphoma, Jacqueline died on 19 May 1994.

Although Jackie was naturally shy and preferred to
avoid the limelight, President Kennedy considered
her to be one of his greatest assets

113

During the moving memorial service for
President Kennedy, Prince Philip held the
hand of Kennedy’s young son, John Jr

had never been very interested in appearing After this, the Queen had suddenly recalled that London’s press swarmed the Kennedys
fashionable, unlike her sister Princess Margaret, Jacqueline was an art lover and insisted upon during their visit. Here, Jackie and
who took a keen interest in haute couture. It’s taking her on a tour of the paintings in the long her sister Lee stand in a doorway
unlikely that the Queen would have cared very gallery, pausing to particularly admire Anthony surrounded by photographers
much about trying to upstage the elegant van Dyck’s portrait of Charles I mounted on his
Jacqueline Kennedy at the dinner. She might have horse. “That’s a good horse,” she remarked.
been more than a little aggrieved, however, had Walking behind them was Jacqueline’s sister Lee,
she known that the First Lady was unimpressed who was accompanied by Prince Philip. “You’re
by the furnishings of Buckingham Palace. Not just like me,” he remarked to her. “You have to
only that, Mrs Kennedy also disliked the flower walk three steps behind.”
arrangements that the Queen had gone to so
much trouble over, reportedly complaining about It is entirely plausible that there was some
them to Cecil Beaton. resentment and an element of competitiveness on
both sides. The Queen perhaps felt a little bit
According to Jacqueline’s friend Gore Vidal, she intimidated by Jacqueline’s famously chic and
later shared her impressions of the royal couple. sophisticated style, which was so unlike her own.
“Philip was nice, but nervous,” she told him, before Meanwhile Mrs Kennedy, as the glamorous wife of
adding that “one felt absolutely no relationship the world’s most powerful man was no doubt
between them.” During a conversation with the more than a little bit envious of a woman who
Queen after the dinner, Jacqueline described how held the power in her own right.
difficult she had found their recent state visit to
Canada and how much she hated being on public Whatever the two women really thought about
display for hours on end. “The Queen looked each other, the two couples parted on good terms
rather conspiratorial and said ‘One gets crafty after and a week later, President Kennedy sent a
a while and learns how to save oneself’,” she birthday message to the Queen that included his
recalled, adding that this was the only time that warm thanks for the evening that they had spent
the other woman had seemed “human”. at Buckingham Palace. “May I also at the same
time say how grateful my wife and I are for the

114

The Queen and the Kennedys

cordial hospitality offered to us by your Majesty Although President Kennedy’s private thoughts about the
and Prince Philip during our visit to London last royal couple remain unknown, it’s clear that he and the
Monday,” he wrote. “We shall always cherish the Queen really hit it off when they met in summer 1961
memory of that delightful evening.”
“THE QUEEN AND JFK WERE
If there were rumours that the Kennedys had FATED TO NEVER MEET AGAIN”
privately been less than complimentary about
their reception at Buckingham Palace, they almost memorial service at St Paul’s Cathedral in London. beside the memorial, onlookers noticed that four-
certainly did not reach the Queen’s ears. She Instead, she held a more private service at St year-old John Kennedy Jr was holding his
invited Jacqueline back again nine months later, George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, which was mother’s hand on one side and that of Prince
when she was visiting her sister Lee in London in attended by almost 400 of the US servicemen Philip on the other. The Queen gave a speech
March 1962. This time, Mrs Kennedy was the soul stationed in Britain at the time. which touched on the close bond that had always
of discretion when she left Buckingham Palace, existed between the Kennedy family and her own,
saying only that “I don’t think I should say The Queen had the opportunity to pay her mirroring the relationship between their two
anything about it except how grateful I am and respects in person on 14 May 1965, when she nations. She declared the monument and the land
how charming she was.” dedicated a memorial stone to the late President at it stood on – given as a gift to the American
Runnymede in Surrey. The ceremony was people – to be “in memory of John Fitzgerald
The Queen and President Kennedy were fated attended by Jacqueline, her two children, Caroline Kennedy, whom in death my people still mourn,
to never meet again. When the news of JFK’s and John Jr, and her late husband’s two brothers, and whom in life they loved and admired.”
assassination broke on 22 November 1963, both Bobby and Ted Kennedy. As the group stood
she and Philip were shocked and devastated. The
Queen sent her condolences to Jacqueline via
telegram: “I am so deeply distressed to learn of the
tragic death of President Kennedy. My husband
joins me in sending our heartfelt and sincere
sympathy to you and your family.”

Inspired by the wave of public grief that swept
across the nation, and by her own personal
feelings towards the Kennedys, the Queen ordered
that flags should be lowered to half mast. In an
unprecedented gesture normally only accorded to
members of the royal family, she also decreed that
the bells of Westminster Abbey should toll in
memory of the President. Later, the Queen would
recall that “the unprecedented intensity of that
wave of grief mixed with something akin to
despair, which swept over our people at the news
of President Kennedy’s assassination, was a
measure of the extent to which we recognised
what he had already accomplished, and of the
high hopes that rode with him in a future that
was not to be.”

Although the Queen very much wanted to
accompany Prince Philip to Kennedy’s funeral in
Washington, she was heavily pregnant at the time
and unable to attend either that or the official

John Fitzgerald Kennedy

The product of a large and politically ambitious Irish Catholic family,

JFK spent his childhood in the shadow of his elder brother

As the second son of the wealthy After graduating from Harvard, end of 1960 after narrowly defeating John F Kennedy was just 46 years old when his life and Images © Getty, Topfoto
and highly ambitious Patrick and John joined the US Navy reserve Nixon. Extraordinarily popular thanks presidency were cut tragically short in November 1963
Rose Kennedy, great things were and would see action during the war, to his relative youth, good looks
expected of John Fitzgerald Kennedy although his promising naval career and charisma, he was considered a
– although it was his elder brother, was cut short by the back issues that beacon of hope not just in his own
Joseph, who had been groomed plagued him throughout his life and country but around the world.
from childhood to one day become which often left him seriously ill.
President of the United States. His popularity and credibility
Patrick Kennedy’s ambitions for his In 1946, Kennedy entered politics soared while handling the Cuban
firstborn were thwarted, however, as a candidate for the Democratic Missile Crisis in October 1962.
when Joe was killed in action during party, winning his first seat a year Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas
World War II. later. This set him on the path to the on 22 November 1963 – a tragedy
presidency, which he secured at the that shook America to its core.

115

The Queen allowed cameramen
unprecedented access to her family’s
private life while they filmed Royal Family
documentary. Here, they are being filmed

having breakfast at Windsor Castle

116

An era of turbulence

AN ERA OF

TURBULENCE
As Britain faced a period of great change, the
1960s and 1970s were challenging decades for
the Queen and her family

Words by Melanie Clegg & Jessica Leggett

B etween 1964 and 1976, many social balance with her other duties as a wife and Wilson, who was elected in October 1964 and
and cultural changes were taking mother. Instead, she was now a confident, mature stayed in power until June 1970, when he was
place in Britain as the Swinging woman who was more than ready and able to rise ousted by the Conservative Edward Heath. Unlike
Sixties got underway, Beatlemania to the challenge of being both a mother and a the well-heeled privately educated men who had
dominated the headlines and Harold monarch. However, although the Queen was been her previous prime ministers, Harold Wilson
Wilson led the first Labour government since the happy to have another baby, her duties quickly was of proudly provincial stock and had attended
1940s. It was an exciting and eventful time for took her elsewhere. She agreed to go on a ten-day a grammar school before going to Oxford, where
everyone – including the royal family. tour of Canada at the end of the year – it was a he excelled in Economics. If the Queen had felt
disaster, marred by an assassination threat, booing nervous about dealing with a noted socialist, she
When Queen Elizabeth gave birth to her fourth in Quebec City and a riot in Montréal, all of which need not have worried. She and Wilson became
and final child, Prince Edward, on 10 March 1964, challenged her famous sang-froid, and she no great friends and thoroughly enjoyed their weekly
she was absolutely delighted with her new baby. doubt wished she had stayed at home instead. meetings, which often went well over the allotted
“Goodness, what fun it is to have a baby in the time as they had so much to talk about.
house again!” she exclaimed, relishing the Over the next decade, the royal family would
prospect of enjoying a more relaxed relationship see many other challenges as the world changed Within just a few weeks of Prince Edward’s
with her two youngest children. When her eldest and the elder royal children matured and started birth, the inner circle of the royal household was
two children, Charles and Anne, were born, the their own independent lives, with plenty of shaken by the revelation that the Surveyor of the
Queen was in her early 20s and had not expected mishaps and dramas along the way. It was also a Queen’s Pictures, the eminent art historian Sir
to inherit the throne for several more decades. By period of great personal satisfaction for the Queen Anthony Blunt (who was a distant cousin of the
the time of Prince Edward’s birth, however, much as she worked hard to boost the royal family’s Queen Mother) had confessed to acting as a Soviet
had changed: she was just a month shy of her popularity. She made them more visible by spy. He had been recruited by Guy Burgess in the
38th birthday and had been on the throne for authorising a groundbreaking documentary and 1930s, and was in fact the hitherto mysterious
over a decade. She was no longer the shy and also introducing walkabouts to her royal ‘Fourth Man’ of the notorious Cambridge Spy
rather awkward young princess who had so engagements, which allowed her to meet more Ring, made up of intellectual Communists.
disliked public displays of affection and felt as members of the public. She also enjoyed working Although there had been rumours about Blunt’s
though her onerous royal duties struck a poor with her first Labour prime minister, Harold involvement in espionage for several years, the

117

The Queen was deeply moved, often to tears, by “1966 WOULD BE A YEAR BOTH
the sights that she saw when she visited Aberfan OF TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY
shortly after the disaster in October 1966 THAT UNITED THE NATION”

revelation came as a huge shock to the Queen, While her elder sister felt distinctly uncomfortable Britain, in the middle of decolonisation, did not
who had no idea. In exchange for his confession, in celebrity circles, Margaret loved to surround support the US involvement in the Vietnam War,
Blunt was offered immunity from prosecution and herself with bohemians – The Beatles and The which strained relations further. It was hoped that
for his secret to be embargoed for 15 years, which Rolling Stones dominated headlines, and she was the princess’s visit would help smooth things over.
meant that he was able to continue in his post as happy to absorb them into her social circle.
usual. However, after his secret was revealed in Margaret and her husband arrived in California,
1979, his life was effectively ruined. He was forced In November 1965, Queen Elizabeth made a travelling to San Francisco, Los Angeles and
to resign his post in the royal household and was bold decision to send Princess Margaret and Lord Arizona, partying with Hollywood stars such as
stripped of the knighthood that had been awarded Snowdon on a three-week overseas tour to the Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, Elizabeth Taylor, and
to him in 1956. After he died of a heart attack in United States. At the time, relations between Richard Burton along the way. Upon their arrival
1983, Blunt’s memoirs revealed that he believed Britain and the US were deteriorating, as was the in Washington, DC, Johnson hosted a formal
that becoming a spy had been “the biggest relationship between Wilson and President dinner at the White House to celebrate their visit,
mistake” of his life. Lyndon B Johnson. Britain was in serious debt, the with the party afterwards lasting until 1.40am.
economy was in trouble and the country needed a While Margaret and Lord Snowdon were a success
A very different sort of drama was brewing loan from the International Monetary Fund, which in the US, their late-night antics, the wild
elsewhere in the royal household as the marriage could only be granted with the US’s approval. Also behaviour of their entourage, and the cost of the
of the Queen’s younger sister, Princess Margaret,
to photographer Lord Snowdon became
increasingly unhappy. The birth of the couple’s
second child in May 1964 brought them together
for a time, but things quickly began to unravel
between them against a vivid backdrop of
glamorous celebrity parties, expensive overseas
holidays and possible alcohol and drug abuse.

118

An era of turbulence

The Aberfan disaster of The drama of
1966 shocked the nation
the decade
trip – an eye-watering £30,000 – caused a negative befallen the small Welsh mining village of
reaction back in Britain. When the couple wanted Aberfan. One of the enormous colliery spoil tips, It was the family’s most
to return for another tour in the 1970s, they were precariously balanced on a hillside above the
banned from doing so by British diplomats. village, collapsed and descended upon the village sensational event of the era, so
in a horrifying avalanche of slurry, almost
Although her husband had been unfaithful completely burying the Pantglas Junior School. why did Netflix overlook the
throughout their marriage, Margaret reportedly There were 144 deaths, including those of 116
did not have her first affair until around 1966 children, most of them pupils at the school. botched abduction of Anne?
when she began a liaison with Anthony Barton, a
friend of the Snowdons and godfather to their Early the next morning, Lord Snowdon visited On the night of 20 March 1974 – barely five months after
daughter. She had a number of discreet affairs the site and spoke to parents of victims and celebrating the high of their wedding with the nation
until she met Roderic ‘Roddy’ Llewellyn, who was rescue workers while his brother-in-law, the Duke – Princess Anne and her husband experienced a very
17 years her junior, in 1973. Although Margaret of Edinburgh, arrived a few hours later. However, terrifying kind of low that occasionally comes with living
described their relationship as a “loving the Queen did not visit until the following week, a under the public eye. Travelling back to Buckingham
friendship”, it’s clear that she was devoted to him. delay that she would later describe as one of her Palace after a royal engagement, the couple – joined by
When photos of the pair on holiday together biggest regrets. She would ultimately visit the their protection officer James Beaton, Anne’s lady-in-
appeared on the front page of The News of the village four more times over the years and the waiting Rowena Brassey, as well as their chauffeur Alex
World, it was the catalyst for the final breakdown people of Aberfan still believe that her continued Callender – almost became victims of a kidnapping plot.
and end of her marriage, which resulted in a interest in them has done a great deal to help As the royal vehicle drove down the Mall, a car swerved
divorce in July 1978. Lord Snowdon swiftly them recover from the disaster. It reminded them in front, forcing the royals to stop. The car’s driver, Ian
married again, but Margaret would remain that they had not been forgotten by the world. Ball, stepped out, brandishing two handguns.
unmarried for the rest of her life.
The 1960s are remembered as an era of great As Beaton jumped into action, he was quickly shot
The nation mourned when news broke on 21 social and cultural change. The younger in the shoulder, as was Callender when he attempted
October 1966 about the terrible tragedy that had generation, who had been born immediately after to disarm Ball. While Ball advanced on Princess Anne,
demanding that she come with him (“Not bloody likely,”
she famously retorted), several passers-by, including
journalist Brian McConnell and former boxer Ron
Russell, intervened before Police Constable Michael Hills
stumbled across the scene and called for back-up. For
his efforts, Hills was shot, but not before his request
was answered. Detective Constable Peter Edmonds
responded pursued Ball, before arresting him. He
pleaded guilty to attempted murder and kidnapping.
All those shot recovered, while Ball was committed to
Broadmoor Hospital.

The story made newspaper headlines and saw Anne
praised for her cool demeanour in the face of danger.
In arguably the family’s most mundane decade, then, it
seems incredible that the writers of The Crown chose to
overlook this larger-than-life event, instead exaggerating
other storylines to almost-fictional proportions, including
the alleged involvement of Lord Mountbatten in a coup
against Harold Wilson.

Unlike her sister, Princess Margaret felt very much at The Crown faithfully re-created the Ian Ball, Princess Anne’s would-be kidnapper, is led Images © Getty, Alamy
home with celebrities and was clearly delighted to meet emotional scenes in the wake of the in handcuffs from a police van to court, where he was
The Beatles at a film premiere in July 1964 Aberfan disaster of October 1966 charged with attempted murder and kidnapping

119

the war and now benefited from the new Prince Charles’s investiture as Prince of Wales When Princess Anne turned 20 in August 1970,
prosperity that had succeeded post-war austerity, caused some controversy amongst Welsh it meant that both of the Queen’s eldest children
celebrated all that was fresh, modern and nationalists and republicans, but despite threats to were now officially out of their teens. Prince
innovative. In the eyes of many, the royal family disrupt the event it was considered a great success Charles graduated from the University of
epitomised the dull and old-fashioned past that Cambridge that summer, then began training with
they were trying their utmost to distance fascinating for a man with his interests. the RAF before emulating his father and
themselves from. It was time for the royals to Meanwhile, his wife was also enthralled by the grandfather by embarking on a career in the Royal
reflect on their place in this new world and mission and deeply impressed by the bravery of Navy. In 1971, shortly after beginning his training,
consider ways to make themselves appear more the astronauts. “I salute the skills and courage he met vivacious socialite Camilla Shand, with
relevant and approachable. which have brought man to the Moon,” she wrote whom he was immediately smitten. Although it
to them. “May this endeavour increase the would turn out that she was more interested in his
In early 1968, the Queen decided to authorise a knowledge and well being of mankind.” She and sister Anne’s ex-boyfriend, a dashing Household
groundbreaking documentary about her family. Prince Philip were both delighted to meet the Cavalry officer called Andrew Parker Bowles,
Ostensibly it was to celebrate the investiture of Apollo 11 crew when they attended a reception at whom Camilla would eventually marry.
Prince Charles as Prince of Wales the following Buckingham Palace later that year. Afterwards,
year, but it would also make the family appear Armstrong and Aldrin commented on how While her brother was starting his career,
more accessible and less remote. Over the next amazingly well informed and interested about Princess Anne was concentrating on her passion
year, cameramen were allowed unprecedented their programme the Queen had been. for equestrian sports. She won the European
access to the Queen and her family (with one Eventing Championships in 1971, which led to her
notable absentee – the Duke of Edinburgh’s Prince Charles met the vivacious Camilla Shand being voted BBC Sports Personality of the Year a
mother, Alice, who had moved into Buckingham in 1971 but the couple split up when he started few months later. After breaking up with Andrew
Palace in 1967) as they went about their daily his RAF training and she married someone else Parker-Bowles, she married noted equestrian
business. The filmmakers accumulated 43 hours Lieutenant Mark Phillips on 13 November 1973.
of footage, which was condensed into an
110-minute documentary, titled Royal Family. However much the newly married couple
clearly wanted to enjoy an private and ordinary
However, when it was screened in June 1969, existence, they were soon reminded just how
with more than 30 million curious British viewers difficult that would be. Within five months of their
tuning in, the response was decidedly muted. wedding, in March 1974 they only narrowly
Many critics thought that presenting the Queen avoided being kidnapped while driving down the
and her family as ordinary people destroyed some
of the intrinsic mystique of royalty, and that in the
long term it would do them more harm than good.
It was therefore decided that the film should be
shelved and never again be broadcast in public.

When Prince Charles’s investiture, a medieval
modern spectacle devised by Lord Snowdon, took
place a few weeks later, it too was marred by
controversy. Although the majority of Welsh
people were in favour of the ceremony, a
significant proportion – many of whom were
members of Welsh nationalist and republican
groups – made their disapproval known and even
threatened to disrupt the event at Caernarfon
Castle. Even the news that Prince Charles had
spent several months learning about Welsh
culture and had even been studying the Welsh
language for the event, did little to improve
matters, although in the end the ceremony passed
without incident.

While the royal family were preparing for the
investiture, preparations of a very different kind
were underway elsewhere as NASA got ready for
one of the most exciting and highly anticipated
events of the 20th century – the first manned
Moon landing. The royal family were amongst the
650 million viewers worldwide who watched Neil
Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin descend from Apollo
11’s lunar lander on 20 July 1969, becoming the
first men to walk on the Moon. It was a thrilling
moment, and perhaps few were quite so excited as
the Duke of Edinburgh, who was deeply interested
in the possibilities of extraterrestrial life and UFOs,
even keeping a map of alleged sightings on a wall
in Buckingham Palace. To actually see men
walking on the Moon would have been absolutely

120

An era of turbulence

Despite the happy facade, Princess Margaret and Lord
Snowdon’s relationship was crumbling, with the latter
leaving the former nasty notes in her books

Despite her initial reservations, the Queen and her first Queen Elizabeth II with the Apollo 11 astronauts, Michael
Labour prime minister, Harold Wilson, developed an Collins, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, when she met
excellent professional relationship and became good friends them at Buckingham Palace

Mall. The assailant, Ian Ball, had forced their car to and kept putting her hand on the Duchess’s arm March 1974, after the tumultuous premiership of Images © Getty, Alamy
stop then shot Anne’s chauffeur and protection and glove.” Edward’s abdication and subsequent Edward Heath. During Heath’s time as prime
officer as well as a journalist who attempted to behaviour over the years had done much to minister, there was widespread unrest with miners’
intervene before demanding that the princess get alienate him from his family as well as make him strikes in 1972 and 1974 triggering power blackouts
out of her car. “Not bloody likely!” Anne retorted deeply unpopular with the British populace, but across the country, leading to the notorious three-
before making her escape. Ball then shot a police by the early 1970s it was clear that the Queen at day working week in an attempt to conserve
officer before finally being overpowered and least was ready to put it all firmly behind her. The electricity. Heath subsequently lost in the snap
arrested. The incident shocked the nation but Duchess of Windsor developed dementia and lived general election to Wilson and the following year,
luckily all those who were shot by Ball recovered as a virtual recluse for the last years of her life. he was ousted as leader of the Conservatives.
from their injuries, while Princess Anne’s calm When she died in April 1986, she was also
composure and bravery were much admired and accorded a funeral in St George’s Chapel and then, The Queen had established a remarkable rapport
won her many new fans. in the presence of the Queen and Duke of and genuine friendship with Prime Minister
Edinburgh as well as other members of the royal Wilson, and the pair were able to resume the
While Princess Anne’s wedding in 1973 was the family, buried beside her husband. weekly meetings that she had enjoyed so much.
great royal celebration of the decade, there was However, despite all of his socialist government’s
another much sadder event in June of the In 1977, the Queen celebrated her Silver Jubilee, achievements when it came to making Britain a
previous year when the Queen’s uncle, the Duke marking 25 years since her accession to the throne healthier, safer and fairer place to live, his period in
of Windsor, was quietly laid to rest in the Royal of the United Kingdom as well as the thrones of office was a deeply stressful one. He dealt with the
Burial Ground at Frogmore House after lying in other Commonwealth realms. The year-long decolonisation of the former empire and, closer to
state in St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. The festivities began on 6 February, the day that the home, the increasing threat of militant groups in
Duke, whose health had been failing for a number Queen’s beloved father, King George VI, passed Northern Ireland. In March 1976, Wilson
of years, had died in Paris on 28 May, just ten days away and she took the throne, with the Queen announced his resignation and as a mark of her
after the Queen paid him a private visit while on a posing for a portrait in the Throne Room at respect, the Queen marked his departure by
state visit to the French capital. The Duchess of Buckingham Palace. She then embarked on a tour attending a dinner at 10 Downing Street – an
Windsor accompanied her husband’s body to with Prince Philip around the Commonwealth and honour that had only once before been accorded, to
England and stayed at Buckingham Palace, where throughout the UK. In June, the Queen went on a Winston Churchill. Although the Queen was sorry
it was noted that the Queen treated her with great procession through London to coincide with her to lose Harold Wilson, she also enjoyed dealing
kindness, probably prompted by the fact that the official birthday, with an estimated one million with his successor James Callaghan, who would
frail Duchess was confused and disorientated and people lining the streets to watch, while another remain in power until he was replaced in 1979 by
eventually had to be sedated on the day of the 500 million people watched it live on television. Margaret Thatcher – which began an altogether
funeral. The Queen, as one observer noted later, different relationship between the Queen and her
“showed a motherly and nanny-like tenderness As for politics, the Queen was no doubt pleased prime minister.
when Harold Wilson was returned to power in

121

A DECADE OF

HIGHS & LOWS

Life for the Queen, her family and the

British people changed enormously

during the 1980s

Words by Jessica Leggett

H istory was made when Margaret future queen. A year after Mountbatten’s death, Scottish residence Balmoral in November 1980.
Thatcher, leader of the Charles played polo and attended a party at Philip By now, the press had cottoned on to the
Conservative Party, was elected de Pass’s house in Surrey, where he became burgeoning relationship between Diana and the
Britain’s first female prime re-acquainted with Lady Diana Spencer. prince, which led to intense media scrutiny
minister on 4 May 1979, securing regarding a possible marriage. Concerned, Philip
43.9 per cent of the votes. Over the next 11 years, Diana was 16 when she met Charles – who was wrote a letter to his son telling him to hurry up
her premiership ushered in Thatcherism, the almost 13 years her senior – for the first time in and decide whether he wanted to propose – both
collective term used for her policies and branch of November 1977, during a grouse hunt at the for his sake and Diana’s reputation. Even though
Conservative ideology, which marked the end of Spencer family home, Althorp. They had been they had only met a few times in person, Charles
the post-war political consensus in Britain and introduced by her oldest sister, Sarah, who briefly got down on one knee and proposed with a
undeniably shaped the nation. dated Charles at the time. When they met again sapphire and diamond engagement ring during a
in 1980, Diana was sympathetic towards Charles, private dinner at Buckingham Palace, with Diana
Just three months after Thatcher’s win, the who was still grieving the loss of his mentor and accepting immediately.
royal family was left devastated when the Queen’s she later recalled their conversation: “We were
cousin, Lord Louis Mountbatten, one of his talking about Mountbatten and his girlfriend and I The couple announced their engagement three
teenage grandsons and two others were killed by said, ‘You must be so lonely.’ I said, ‘It’s pathetic weeks later on 24 February 1981. They had an
an IRA bomb planted on his fishing boat in watching you walking up the aisle with interview with the BBC that day at the Palace,
County Sligo, Ireland. He received a ceremonial Mountbatten’s coffin in front, ghastly, you need with Charles stating that he was “delighted and
funeral at Westminster Abbey on 5 September. someone beside you.’” frankly amazed that Diana is prepared to take me
Lord Mountbatten had been close to his grand- on,” whilst Diana shyly admitted that she was
nephew, Prince Charles, and acted as a mentor and It was after this that Charles began to consider “delighted and thrilled, blissfully happy.” However,
‘honorary grandfather.’ He had counselled Charles Diana as a potential bride and they subsequently the cracks in their relationship were already
on many things including his love life, famously began courting, largely through phone calls. starting to show – when the couple was asked if
encouraging the prince to sow his wild oats, Charles invited her to join him on the royal yacht, they were in love, Charles infamously responded
before settling down with a young and HMY Britannia, followed by an invitation to meet with “whatever ‘in love’ means.” Diana later
inexperienced girl who would be suitable as a his family, notably the Queen, the Duke of admitted that his answer “traumatised” her.
Edinburgh and the Queen Mother, at their

122

A decade of highs and lows

Charles and Diana ride in a
carriage after their wedding

at St Paul’s Cathedral

123

On 29 July that year, Charles and Diana were Emma Corrin stars as Princess Mary’s Hospital, Paddington, London, on 21 June
married at St Paul’s Cathedral, London, in a Diana in the new series 1982. As the firstborn son of Charles and Diana, he
televised ceremony that was seen by around 150 was second in line to the British throne after his
million people around the globe. The bride’s iconic It was not long before the Queen would suffer father, and he was also the first child to be born to
wedding dress was made from an ivory silk taffeta another scare, this time in her bedroom. At 7am a prince and princess of Wales in 77 years.
and antique lace gown with a 25-foot train, on 9 July 1982, a man named Michael Fagan
designed by David and Elizabeth Emanuel. With scaled the wall of Buckingham Palace, climbed up While the royal family had a busy start to the
her marriage to Charles, Diana became the first a drainpipe and entered the royal residence. As he 1980s, Margaret Thatcher had also had her hands
Englishwoman to marry the heir to the throne in wandered around the building towards the royal full during her first term as prime minister. In the
three centuries – the last one was Anne Hyde, who apartments, he triggered the security alarm twice mid-1970s, inflation had risen to over 25% and it
had married the future King James II in 1660. but it was turned off by the police, who believed was Thatcher’s job to try and tame it, which she
that it was faulty. Around 15 minutes after did with a series of liberalising economic policies,
The newlyweds spent the beginning of their breaking into the Palace, Fagan entered the including a sharp increase in interest rates.
honeymoon at the Mountbatten family home at Queen’s bedroom and pulled back a curtain,
Broadlands in Hampshire, just as Queen Elizabeth waking her up. Reports at the time claimed that However, the United Kingdom subsequently
and Prince Philip had done for their honeymoon. he had sat at the end of the Queen’s bed, but entered a recession, which left 2 million people
Afterwards, they flew to Gibraltar to join the HMY Fagan later admitted that she had left the room unemployed by the autumn of 1980. In October,
Britannia for a cruise through the Mediterranean immediately to call security and that police had Thatcher famously responded to those who
to Egypt, before ending their honeymoon at failed to arrive, despite being called twice. In the wanted her to do a U-turn on her policies, stating
Balmoral. In October, the couple paid their first end, he was finally arrested after Paul Whybrew, a that “The lady’s not for turning,” during her
visit to Wales together. footman, arrived with two policemen on palace speech at the Conservative Party conference.
duty, although he was ultimately not charged for
Aside from the wedding, 1981 was a busy year trespassing. The incident has since been widely Nevertheless, the recession and rising
in general for the royal family. In May, Princess described as one of the worst royal security unemployment coupled with increasing racial
Anne gave birth to her daughter and the Queen’s breaches of the 20th century. tensions led to the outbreak of the Brixton riots in
first granddaughter, Zara. Zara was Anne’s second south London in April 1981, lasting for three days.
child with her husband, Captain Mark Phillips, as Meanwhile, less than three weeks before the Rioting soon spread to other cities and towns
their first son and the Queen’s first grandchild, break-in, the nation was elated when Diana gave across the country, characterised by clashes
Peter, had been born in 1977. birth to Prince William Arthur Philip Louis at St

The next month, 17-year-old Marcus Sarjeant
fired six blank shots at the Queen while she rode
down The Mall for the annual Trooping the Colour
ceremony. The Queen was unharmed and
although her horse was initially spooked, she
remained calm and managed to get him back
under control. When Sarjeant was arrested and
questioned, he claimed that he wanted to become
famous, having been inspired by the assassination
of John Lennon seven months prior, as well as the
attempted assassinations of Ronald Reagan and
Pope John Paul II.

The Queen and Thatcher may
have clashed at times, but
they respected one another

124

A decade of highs and lows

between young Black men and

the police, which ultimately

subsided. In an interview that

aired after the Brixton riots

ended, Thatcher dismissively

argued, “Whatever the problems,

nothing, but nothing, justifies

what happened…”

Thatcher also had to deal with

the rising tensions between the

United Kingdom and Argentina

over the Falkland Islands, The Queen riding sidesaddle
located in the South Atlantic. during the Trooping the
Argentina had claimed Colour procession, 1981
sovereignty over the Falklands, a

British overseas territory, for

years, and on 2 April 1982, the Argentinians

invaded the Falklands. Thatcher responded by

sending a naval task force, including the Royal

Navy and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, to take back

the islands. The undeclared war between the two

nations lasted for a total of 74 days with a series of

engagements, which left three Falklands civilians,

255 British troops and around 650 Argentinians

dead. It ended with Argentina’s surrender on 14 with 144 seats. With this majority, Thatcher and colliery in Yorkshire. This quickly turned into a
national strike against the government’s National
June, thereby restoring British control over the the Conservatives were able to usher in tax cuts, Coal Board led by Arthur Scargill and the National
Union of Mineworkers (NUM), who were angered
Falkland Islands. privatisation, deregulation and trade union reform. by the suggested pit closures.

The quick victory helped to secure a desperately The last of these, trade union reform, took A bitter battle of wills quickly followed between
Thatcher and Scargill, alongside violent
needed surge in popularity for Thatcher, who was centre stage during the miners’ strike of 1984- confrontations between picketers and the police.
Previously, the miners’ strike of 1974 had triggered
consequently re-elected for a second term by a 1985. On 5 March 1984, local miners called a strike the downfall of the last Conservative government,
led by Edward Heath, and Thatcher was
landslide in June 1983, securing a huge majority over the proposed closure of the Cortonwood determined not to give in. As the NUM had not
held a national strike ballot, the strike was
“A BITTER BATTLE OF WILLS declared illegal in September and with no victory
FOLLOWED BETWEEN in sight, the strikers were forced to concede in

THATCHER AND SCARGILL”

Lord Mountbatten and Prince Charles Margaret Thatcher arrives Images © Getty, Alamy
are pictured together just one month at 10 Downing Street after
before the former’s assassination her election victory in 1979

125

March 1985. The defeat of the NUM weakened the Although Diana was naturally shy, she quickly became increasingly invasive and hostile as they
trade union movement and Thatcher’s win became a hit with the public and press in her role tried to get the latest hot gossip surrounding the
signalled a major turning point in industrial as Princess of Wales, and was widely celebrated as royal family.
relations in Britain. a modernising force within the royal family. The
prince and princess went on many official Amid her crumbling marriage, Diana dedicated
While in the middle of the miners’ strike, overseas tours, including India, Canada, Nigeria, herself to her charity work as the president or
Thatcher and her cabinet survived an Cameroon, Spain, France, Japan and Austria – patron of over 100 charities. She particularly
assassination attempt by the Provisional IRA at where Diana was photographed aboard the focused on charities for children, the disabled, the
the Grand Brighton Hotel in Brighton, on 12 Concorde in April 1986. The princess also took homeless and people with HIV and AIDS. In April
October 1984. They had been staying at the hotel many solo official trips overseas starting in 1982, 1987, the princess opened the first HIV/AIDS unit
for the Conservative Party conference and when she represented the Queen at the state at London Middlesex Hospital, where she was
Thatcher was still awake when the bomb funeral of Princess Grace of Monaco, as well as famously photographed shaking hands with an
detonated at approximately 2.54am. Neither trips to locations such as Norway, Germany, Nepal, AIDS patient without her glove on. By doing so,
Thatcher nor her husband, Dennis, were injured Belgium and New York. Diana publicly challenged the belief that the virus
but sadly five people who were associated with could be passed on through physical touch, at a
the Conservatives – including an MP – were killed Despite their outward appearance as a happy time when there was a lot of misinformation and
and several more were left permanently disabled. couple, after five years of marriage Charles and scaremongering about HIV in the media.
Diana were becoming increasingly divided and
Undeterred, Thatcher continued to push unhappy, with both starting extramarital affairs. In June 1987, Thatcher made history once again
through her policies, which included privatising Even while he had been dating Diana, Charles was when she was re-elected for a third term with a
major utilities such as British Telecom, British still in love with his former girlfriend, Camilla, majority of 101 seats. This historic victory meant
Aerospace and British Gas, alongside organisations who had married Andrew Parker Bowles in 1973. that she would become the longest-serving prime
like British Airways and Rolls-Royce. In fact, Charles and Camilla reportedly rekindled their minister Britain had had in over 150 years, a
during her 11 years as prime minister, over 40 romance in 1986, with Diana ultimately record that is still unbroken today. In the final
previously state-owned businesses in the UK had confronting the latter in 1989. years of her premiership, Thatcher drew a lot of
been privatised. scrutiny over her attitude towards the racist
While Charles was with Camilla, Diana turned apartheid regime in South Africa. Throughout the
While Thatcher was taking on the miners and to Major James Hewitt of the Household Cavalry, 1980s, she pursued “constructive engagement”
privatising national industries, Diana had given who had given the princess riding lessons. Their with the White minority government to bring
birth to her second son, Prince Henry Charles relationship was soon exposed in the press and about change. Although she opposed apartheid,
Albert David, on 15 September 1984 at St Mary’s indeed, throughout the decade, the tabloids Thatcher refused to impose the sanctions that
Hospital. Affectionately known as Harry, the new
prince was third in line for the throne at the time Charles and Diana pose for pictures following
of his birth. the announcement of their engagement

When it came to raising her boys, Diana was
determined to give her sons a wider upbringing
than the one traditionally given to royal children.
Diana broke with royal tradition when she insisted
that William join her and Charles on their tour of
Australia and New Zealand in 1983 – she did the
same again two years later by bringing both of
their boys on a tour of Italy.

The famous photograph of
Diana shaking hands with an
AIDS patient without gloves

126

A decade of highs and lows

Gillian Anderson stars in the latest Season 5 of
series as Margaret Thatcher, the The Crown
UK’s first female prime minister
What can we expect from
other Western nations had implemented, believing Despite the rumoured tensions between the two the next season of this gripping Images © Getty, Alamy
that they were a crime against free trade. In women, the Queen did attend Thatcher’s 70th and
October 1987, she landed in hot water when she 80th birthday celebrations, even though she was Netflix drama?
declared the African National Congress, led by an not duty-bound. She even made Thatcher a Lady
imprisoned Nelson Mandela, a “typical terrorist of the Garter in 1995, an honour that is usually As The Crown inevitably moves closer to the present
organisation.” Still, Thatcher repeatedly urged bestowed to former prime ministers but is by no day, there has been much speculation as to when creator
South Africa’s president, PW Botha, to release means a guarantee. Peter Morgan will stop his beloved series. Morgan has
Mandela and after 27 years, he was finally freed previously stated that he will not include events from
on 11 February 1990. Even so, Thatcher’s policy When Thatcher died in April 2013, the Queen the last two decades and therefore, this leaves us to
towards apartheid remains a controversial part of chose to attend the funeral, marking only the assume that season 5 will at least cover the events from
her legacy. second time she went to a funeral of one of her the early-to-mid-1990s.
former prime ministers, with the first being
Thatcher was the Queen’s eighth prime minister Winston Churchill, her first prime minister, in Undoubtedly, this will include Queen Elizabeth’s
– they were in unique positions as two women in 1965. Thatcher was given a ceremonial funeral, self-proclaimed “annus horribilis”, an expression she
male-dominated spheres – and she was only six with the Queen’s assent, and there were no rules used during her speech at Guildhall on 24 November
months older than Queen Elizabeth II. So what to state whether the Queen had to attend or not. 1992 to mark the 40th anniversary of her accession. It
was their personal relationship like? The Queen So, her decision to go, along with the Duke of referred to the year 1992, which saw various unpleasant
and Thatcher never publicly spoke about their Edinburgh, was a personal one and it events for the royal family. This included the separation
relationship and so it can only be speculated demonstrated her respect for Thatcher. of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, the divorce of
about. Still, it is believed that the two women Princess Anne and Mark Phillips and the fire that caused
were tense and awkward with each other, clashing In March 1990, the Conservatives announced extensive damage to Windsor Castle.
over issues including the Falklands War and the plans for a ‘poll tax’ that would begin in England
miners’ strike. and Wales on the 1 April. The tax was strongly It was also the year in which Andrew Morton’s
opposed and led to anti-poll tax rallies as well as a book, Diana: Her True Story, was published. The tell-all
This is most evident when it came to the march in London, comprising 70,000 people, that book discussed the problems in the princess’s marriage
Commonwealth. It was clear by 1986 that the ultimately led to rioting in Trafalgar Square. Her to Charles, alluded to his affair with Camilla and Diana’s
Queen was upset with tensions in the support of the poll tax, as well as her anti-EU alleged suicide attempts – it was later revealed that
Commonwealth, the political association of views, sparked a crisis in confidence in Thatcher’s Diana herself had provided Morton with information via
which she is the head, caused by Thatcher’s leadership and opposition from her own party. secret tape recordings, revealing the difficulties she had
ambivalence to the apartheid in South Africa. faced. That December, it was announced that Prince
That July, the Queen’s press secretary told the Thatcher resigned as prime minister and Charles and Princess Diana would be separating after
Sunday Times that she found the prime minister Conservative Party leader on 22 November 1990 months of speculation.
‘uncaring’ with a ‘socially divisive’ policy. and was succeeded by John Major, who developed
Monarchs are not supposed to involve themselves a warm friendship with the Queen. As Britain Anticipation for the final season is already growing
in politics and the Queen was mortified, calling moved into a new decade, it was a socially, thanks to the announcement that critically acclaimed
Thatcher herself to personally apologise. politically and economically changed country actress Imelda Staunton will replace Olivia Coleman.
Nonetheless, it is said that Thatcher never forgot from what it had been at the start of 1980s – and She will be joined by Jonathan Pryce as Prince Philip,
the criticism of the Queen. for the royal family, there were challenges ahead Lesley Manville as Princess Margaret and Elizabeth
the likes of which they could only imagine. Debicki as Princess Diana.

Imelda Staunton will play Queen Elizabeth II in the
upcoming season of The Crown

127

Discover how
the greatest
empires in
history were

forged

Explore the
spellbinding world
of sorcery, spells

and shamanic
trances

Chart the rise
of Hitler and
learn how he set
Germany on the
path to war

STEP BACK IN TIME WITH
OUR HISTORY TITLES

Immerse yourself in a world of emperors, pioneers, conquerors
and legends and discover the events that shaped humankind

Delve into
the myths and
monsters of
ancient Greece

Follow us on Instagram @futurebookazines

www.magazinesdirect.com

SUBSCRIBE &

SAVE UP TO 61%

Delivered direct to your door
or straight to your device

Choose from over 80 magazines and make great savings off the store price!
Binders, books and back issues also available
Simply visit www.magazinesdirect.com

No hidden costs Shipping included in all prices We deliver to over 100 countries Secure online payment



THE REAL HISTORY

C R O W NOF THE

The true story of love and sacrifice during the reign of Elizabeth II

Meet the man who captured – and See some of the royal family’s
then broke – Margaret’s heart defining historical moments

9021 What really happened when the From Diana to Thatcher, discover
President visited the Queen? the drama of the 1980s

9000