Page
THE CHINA MAIL, SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 1960.
She's marvellous, said
the King...
CHAMBERLAIN and Munich, slit trenches and
olive green guns sprouting among the grimy
black lime trees in the London parks, strange affil
QUARESTUREZATRIKSSUESETIEROSSDRESSIONSMES
MOTHER of the QUEEN
The war had begun-and 'she
said: “I won't leave Britain
without the King...and the
King" will never leave.......”
80005 PART THREE 6000888****************£É
forbidding initials, A.R.P. and Civil Defence on reminding him that it was The Queen. as pleeidly as it were, laughing so much that all these things were the bitter ingredients of the just about there that the Titanic she were having a tea party, their eyes were Alled with tears. new life that awaited the Queen Mother when she was struck and just about the chat, was his audience.
first moved into Buckingham Palace as the wife some day.
of the shy, stubborn King George VI.
There were to be very few of the spacious, tranquil, tradi- tional royal days and occasions for her, It was a Hime of slain and belated preparation for the storm ahead. ·
And as the nation fell in
by Robert Glenton
on the parade grounds, dug He was having a quarrel with shelters in The back gardens the Admiralty, who wanted to and spent Its spare evenings crawling
through smoke-filed take him across the Atlantic in chambers at stirrup-pump re-
a battle erulsor, The King heurspls, there was a role for argued holly that it was no time the King and Queen to play...
to deprive the Fleet of a ship It so badly needed.. First, they had to pay a stole visit to France to demonstrate unity with that ally.
Decision
Cocking a enooit af Hitler, the Parisians
their made
ely sparkle and giliter rs it ha never done before It was no easy task for the Query, who Was happiest in tweeds and head scarves. to outdazzle that brilliance, But she did.
Less than a year later, with the war egly months away. ancther state visit was decreed. This time ta Canada and the United States.
If ever there was a, mission that sought good will this was $1.
Retsevelt
badly
. President wanted the young Prince.ses to visit Washington too.
His request reached the Palace. But the
heavily sccupied.
So it was left to the Queen to come to a decision about the children, She was very frin,
1
"They are far too young" she sald.
That tour was even more a auccess than the visit to France.
Upset
Delermined as the King was
fighting. Again it was the Queen who to go down was the sensation.
"The King's visit.. Queen's triumph" the headlines.
But a more unlikely place to find gaiety than: Buckingham Palace would be hard to find during these war days.
Life there was almost prison- the ate in its austerity. illude of the pair of them upset the
from refugee monarchs The Europe who were now slay- sold ing at the Paluce.
Very few London homes were less prepared for the war thor Buckingham Palace. Although it was eventually bombed nine Umes, it had no air raid shelter in 1930- just a housemaid's room in the basement.
11
The Queen's
bedroom, enormous place, had had every window blisted out.
They had had expérience of
It was dark, il-lt, and as the Jiller's attempts to kidnap
the Palace all the crowned
bis King insisted that heads thugs
could lay their hands should fare no better than any in the country, a on, and they had little faith other home In the Palace defences, which coat fre was never lit. mainly consisted of a detach-
In
Was consequence ment of the Guarda,
extremely damp. The King and Queen seemed never free from spids.
King Haaken of Norway was It was taken for granted that
the biggest agitator. One day the Princesses, like so many he demanded to know what other children, would go across would happen if there
WIS the Atlantic. Once more the
With cost- decision was left to the Queen. parachute attack.
siderable wolomb the King stretched out
hand 0
and pressed an alarm button.
Then with the Queen holding arm he led the way inlo the garden to watch.
And although in times of tribulation other Queens have made fine, stirring speeches that have moved the nation, Queen Elizabeth's answer to the sug- gestion was 1
as defiant as any of them.
Meanwhile the King defeated the Admiralty. The royal couple einbarked aboard
chartered liner at Southampton and promptly ran into trouble. For the first time for years ice flors and icebergs had come very far south.
-Creeping dismally olengils sirens walling through the damp white fog and echoing back from the icebergs, the ship was, 5000 two days behind schedule.
Defiant
The Queen was busy com- miserating with the captain. "The poor man
nearly demented." she told Queen
WGB
**The children won't go without me," she said softly. "I won't leave without the King. And the King will never leave,"
Soon came the threat of inva sion, and the King and Queen were far too occupied learning to handle a tommy-gun in the shooting range in the Palace Hardens to centemplate leaving the palace,
King
Night after night when they
alone
dis cursed his plans for forming a
were
the
his
There was absolutely nothing to 800. For minutes they watched, but there was only a Tranquil silence. An zquerry led to the Officer of the Guard who apologised, but suld he had been told by the police sergeant on duly that he had been warned of no attack.
Appalled
Soon after that, watched by " Eppalled King Hoakon, parly of Guardsmen, completely unprepared. doubled Into the garden.
In love
Bur'in ham. Palice have been one of the very few wears a this country that never heselted by so muss ei a braus e from the trik market.
What food there was appeared even more patheti on state cccasions served on gold and silver plate.
But V.E. Day Binally came, and on that national holiday London Backed to the Palace gates and sang and rejoiced all day.
Eight times the Royal Family and walked on to the balcony were cheered,
It was years ago in time but so much further in affec- tion since the royal couple had sadly listened to the crowds most of the spectacle. They carily shouting culoide the
King was Mory afterwards, "because resistance movement If The The King and Quesa missed
some kind, cheerful people kept Germans ever landed,
OFF TO THE RACES-King Gourgo VI and Queen Elizabeth in their open landeu
kates,
"We want
same Edward...."
Soon there was another rayal siluation to meat....this time a domestle one. It was quite clear that Elizabeth and Philip were in love.
daughter had indeed, deter inined to marry her first love and happily they consented. There was high excitement for the Queef and "her two daughters as the wedding arrangements were made, But
During the war they had met up on one point was motherby
and written to each other,
adament. She was not going to. the allow her daughter to have the discussed The Queen matter with her husband, ond long drawn-out, extravagant they decided lo ignore the wedding breakfast that she and matter
as they her husband had had to sit could.
through for hours,
fer Fa long
יד יין
"You' will want to get away: "
But that wasn't for long. King George of Greece talsed it soon in a plea for his young she said. "And you must," retailve..
On her honeymoon Princess
QUOTE
architect
Strachmi, addressing the Royal Institution of Charterest . "Sur- veyors in London:
ке
THE family house of the
future muit, hate lying space which is free from the sight and sounds of the Letovision room where a member of the family can read (or write in, peace, and where the children can do their home- work.
Asin they talked it over. Elizabeth received a letter from The Queen pointed out that her father. It said, "I have-by Dame Evelyn Sharp, per- Philip was really the only watched you grow up all there manent secretary to the Hous- young man of the right age their years with pride inder, the ing Ministry, in London: daughter really knew and that skilful direction of mummy. it was unlikely that he would who, as you know, is the most be the one she would finally marvellous person in the world choose to marry..
In my eyes??
They agreed to withhold their consent and, told the King, of Greece to advise Prince Philip to forget the matter for the Ume being;
But the day came when even the King and Queen were convinced that their
:
Next Wednesday:
Her role today
MPLOYERS. who have not moved out to the now fajna will be kloking... themselves in the years ahead. ..
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today To
-(London Expreta Service.J
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