. .
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, 99, have traveled extensively together during their lives. According to authors, the Duke of Edinburgh was invaluable on some of the Queen’s early royal tours. This is said to be due to Philip’s natural, easy-going charm, which was not so easy for the young Elizabeth.
However, the monarch, worried about her sick father, did not make a good impression.
« In Canada, the crowds wildly applauded Prince Philip but criticized the princess for her unsmiling look, » wrote Bradford.
Time Magazine reported at the time: “Instead of the balanced and charming beauty that most Canadians expected, she was nervous and inarticulate.
We only use your email address to send newsletters. Further information on your data protection rights can be found in our data protection declaration.
Bradford stated, “Aside from worrying about her father, she had not yet discovered the ability to deal with crowds that was so easy for her mother and husband. ”
Unlike the Queen, the public loved the laid-back Philip who didn’t seem to be fighting in public.
« Queen Elizabeth’s smile had become her trademark (she was referred to as ‘grinners’ by some of her more disrespectful friends) while the handsome Prince Philip always found it easy to take a laid-back democratic stance in public, » Bradford said.
Eventually, though, Elizabeth warmed up to her role. « However, as the tour progressed, the princess began to relax and the crowd grew more excited, » said Bradford.
In 1953, after the Queen’s coronation, the couple traveled forty thousand miles around the world for six months to visit twelve countries in 1953.
At the beginning of her reign, Elizabeth hadn’t mastered the art of small talk – but for Philip it was exactly the opposite.
« With high discipline, Elizabeth could stand in the sun for hours and ride a horse saddle for miles, » wrote Kitty Kelley in 1997 in her book The Royals.
“But interacting with people and talking to strangers for long periods of time was a burden. ”
According to reporter Gwen Robyns, who was part of the small press contingent that accompanied the monarch on the 1953 tour, Philip was « really wonderful » to his wife.
« Philip was perfect for her and she was blindly in love with him, » Kelley quotes Robyns.
« She was so young and insecure as a queen. Very, very confident as a monarch. Painfully insecure. She didn’t know how to behave among so many people.
« But [Philip] was sleek and simple, more sophisticated. He would put her in a good mood and warm her up for the crowd. She was grumpy most of the time from being overwhelmed, but he would make her smile. ”
Robyns added, “We could see that he was really wonderful to her. It lit up around him . . . He really wore them on this trip. ”
Check out today’s front and back covers, download the newspaper,
Order previous editions and take advantage of the historic Daily Express
Newspaper archive.
Queen Elizabeth II. , Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
World news – GB – Queen Elizabeth ‘sullen’ & Prince Philip ‘flirtatious’ – Differences in the journeys of the royals
Ref: https://www.express.co.uk
