Queen Elizabeth feared dying at Balmoral, said it would make things ‘difficult’
Queen Elizabeth II
Queen Elizabeth II passed away peacefully at her Balmoral castle in Scotland on September 8, 2022. Elizabeth died at the age of 96. In her 70 years of reign, the Queen had taken many crucial decisions, and even in the last few days of her life, the late monarchwas worried that if she died at Balmoral, it would be difficult to organise her funeral.
In a new BBC documentary, Charles III: The Coronation Year, Elizabeth's daughter Anne, who was beside her mother when she took her last breath, recounted how the late monarch was advised not to be part of the decision about her funeral.
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In the forthcoming special, Princess Royal says the family argued that practical issues like that shouldn’t be her concern.
"I think there was a moment when she felt that it would be more difficult if she died at Balmoral," Anne says in the teaser released.
"And I think we did try and persuade her that that shouldn't be part of the decision-making process. So I hope she felt that was right in the end, because I think we did."
Further, Anne said that it was 'serendipity' that she was at Balmoral by her mother’s side. The royal recounted when the Imperial State Crown was removed from her coffin.
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Watching the crown taken away from the coffin, Anne said that she ‘weirdly felt a sense of relief’.
She tells in the documentary: ''My mother’s funeral in St George’s, he takes the crown off the coffin – I rather weirdly felt a sense of relief, somehow that’s it, finished. That responsibility being moved on.''
Anne also talked about King Charles becoming king after her mother's death. She said, “To be honest, I’m not sure that anybody can really prepare themselves for that kind of change, at least not easily. And then the change happens and you go: ‘OK, I now need to get on with it’.”
Further, the Princess Royal praises Queen Camilla for her ‘outstanding’ understanding of her role.
''Her understanding of her role and how much difference it makes to the King has been absolutely outstanding, and this role is not something she would have been a natural for, but she does it really well,'' she added before saying, ''And she provides that change of speed and tone, she’s equally modern.''
The 90-minute documentary will air on Boxing Day, Dec. 26. The special segment is narrated by Helena Bonham Carter and features candid moments of King Charles III from his coronation day, showing him with his son Prince William, among others.
