Princess by Jane Dismore - Guest Blogger Book Review
Synopsis
In November 2017 the
Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh celebrated their 70th wedding
anniversary. As a 13-year-old Princess, she fell in love with Prince
Philip of Greece, an ambitious naval cadet, and they married when she
was 21; when she suddenly became Queen at 25, their lives changed
forever. Philip has been her great support, but fortunately she also had
a solid foundation that helped prepare her for a life dedicated to
duty. With previously unpublished material and unique memories from
friends and relatives who have known her since childhood, this book
looks afresh and in richer depth at her life as Princess, glittering yet
isolating. Vivid detail and anecdotes reveal more about her, the era in
which she grew up and the people who shaped her life. The archives of
royal confidante Lady Desborough and Private Secretary Sir Alec Hardinge
reveal unseen letters from the Princess and the royal family, giving
intimate insights into their lives and minds. Here is her sadness at the
death of her nanny, Alah; her joy in her children; her melancholy as a
young wife when Philip returns to his ship; the sensitivities of her
father. Here too is the Princess with the aristocratic Bowes Lyons, her
mother's family, who featured significantly in her life, yet rarely
appear in books. The author sheds new light on anomalies surrounding the
birth of her mother who, it has been asserted, was the daughter of the
family's cook. The strain of wartime on the royal family is highlighted
in new material contrasting the stance of the Princess's uncles, the
Duke of Windsor and David Bowes Lyon. In contrast with her upbringing,
Philip's early life was turbulent, although their lives shared some
interesting parallels. Lady Butter, a relation of Philip and friend of
the Princess, recalls time spent with each of them; and unpublished
documents show how intelligence agencies considered the socialist
influence of the Mountbattens on Philip and thus on the royal court.
More importantly, Princess traces how an "ordinary country girl"
suddenly found herself in the line of succession to the crown at age ten
when her Uncle, the Duke of Windsor, abdicated the throne to his
brother Albert ("Bertie" to family and friends), the once and future
King George VI. Breaking new ground for a future English monarch, she
became the first female member of the royal family to serve on active
duty during World War II, and broke tradition by sending her children
away to school rather having them privately tutored. Indeed, by the time
of her coronation in 1953, she had already achieved a "broad and solid
background from which she could draw during the rapidly changing times
of her long reign. Out of a little princess they made a Queen."
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Jennifer's Review
Princess was a very interesting book about the life of Elizabeth II and her family, and how they lived, got their titles, and how the
princess Elizabeth became a queen.
I liked it. I give it 3 stars.
Author Bio
Jane Dismore has written for The Times and The Telegraph and many magazines including History Today.
She also contributes to historical and royal websites. During five
years abroad she ran yachts in the Mediterranean and wrote and presented
radio features for the British Forces Broadcasting Service. She has a
B.Ed. Hons. Degree from Newnham College, Cambridge and taught A-level
English Literature. Later she qualified as a solicitor, specialising in
employment law, and appeared regularly on local radio as the ‘legal
eagle.’ In 2013 she left the law to write full-time, although she
remains on the Roll of Solicitors. Her books include Duchesses: Living in 21st Century Britain and The Voice From the Garden: Pamela Hambro and the Tale of Two Families Before and After the Great War.
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