Princess Anne told staffer it would be the ‘last time’ they hugged after Queen Elizabeth’s death: report
Princess Anne shrugged off a small moment of affection from a staff member after her mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died in September 2022.
According to an excerpt from royal biographer Robert Hardman’s new book, “The Making of a King: King Charles III and the Modern Monarchy,” published in the Daily Mail, Anne, 73, was waiting at Balmoral Castle in Scotland for King Charles after Elizabeth’s passing,
As she silently stood by for her older brother, 75, to arrive at the Firm’s summer estate, a senior staffer asked to hug her.
“There then followed a wry smile. ‘That is the last time that’s going to happen,’ the princess said firmly, Hardman penned in his book released today.
He also included a memo of the sovereign’s final moments that were recorded by her private secretary, Sir Edward Young.
“Very peaceful. In her sleep. Slipped away. Old age. She wouldn’t have been aware of anything. No pain,” Young wrote in the letter that is now held in the Royal Archives.
Anne and the late monarch’s senior dresser, Angela Kelly, were by her bedside as she lay dying.
Reverend Kenneth MacKenzie had also been sitting with the queen in her final hours, reading her verses from the Bible.
Anne previously noted in the “Charles III: The Coronation Year” documentary that aired last December that her mother was worried that her funeral would be too “difficult” to formulate if she passed away in Scotland.
“I think there was a moment when she felt that it would be more difficult if she died at Balmoral,” she recalled for the special. “I think we did try to persuade her that shouldn’t be part of the decision-making process.”
At the time of Elizabeth’s death, many members of the royal family were still in England and had raced to reach her before she drew her final breath.
Prince William hurried to the Scottish abode alongside his uncles Prince Andrew and Prince Edward.
Charles and Queen Camilla also spent an hour with Elizabeth before she passed away.
Kate Middleton opted to stay behind in the United Kingdom with her children Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5, as they had just started the first day of classes at the Lambrook school.
At the time, reports surfaced that Prince Harry’s wife, Meghan Markle, was ordered to stay home in their Montecito mansion in Los Angeles, while her husband traveled to Scotland.
The Princess of Wales’ decision to stay in England allegedly made it easier for royals to tell Harry, 39, that Meghan, 42, was not welcome at Balmoral.
“It was by luck rather than judgement, but it made it a lot easier to tell Harry he was coming alone,” a palace aide told Hardman for his book.
