Free A Brief History of the Private Life of Elizabeth II by Michael Paterson Page A

time in the months and years that followed she
fell seriously in love with him.

 
WARTIME, 1939–1947
    ‘Poor Darlings, they have not had any fun yet.’
    ‘Who is this Hitler, spoiling everything?’ Princess Margaret had asked. Elizabeth knew, and hated him. She was disappointed when war did not break out in 1938 over
Czechoslovakia and was rebuked by her nurserymaid, Miss MacDonald: ‘ You don’t know what war is like!’ When it did come the following year, she found out soon enough. Just
over a month later, some 800 men were killed when HMS Royal Oak was sunk by a U-boat. Her anguish, and outrage, were genuine: ‘It can’t be! All those nice sailors!’
    The Second World War was to cost the young Princess very heavily. It destroyed the house in which she was born, the chapel in which she was christened, the home she had loved for the first
decade of her life. Her parents were almost killed; her uncle was. She herself heard the sound of falling bombs and anti-aircraft fire, and had to go to shelter when enemy planes were overhead. She
saw a doodlebug crash and explode in Windsor Great Park (more than 300 bombs fell there during the conflict). She would perhaps see – and would at least hear –the
waves of German bombers passing over the Castle on their way to annihilate Coventry. She worried about her father when he put himself in danger by travelling to war-zones, and about her
‘young man’, serving in convoys on the North Sea, the Atlantic and the Pacific. She experienced rationing and shortages (even Royalty had a black line painted round its baths to prevent
overfilling). She suffered separation from her parents.
    On the outbreak of war, in September 1939, the princesses were at Balmoral, and remained there. For the time being, their idyll continued. ‘Are we too happy?’ the conscience-stricken
girl was to ask when the war eventually became more serious and more dangerous. Although initially nothing happened, for Hitler was still digesting Poland, there was the danger of air raids. Since
the previous year, when war had almost begun, extensive precautions had been taken to protect both buildings and people. There were air-raid drills, wardens and auxiliary medical services, concrete
shelters, sandbags everywhere. The contents of museums were removed to safety. There was much talk of sending people abroad, too. It was speculated that the princesses might go to Canada to wait
out hostilities.
    King George would not consider this. He would not be parted from his daughters, and saw it as important to national morale that the Royal Family stay in Britain. It was decided, however, that
some members should depart from London. Queen Mary went to stay at Badminton, the country house in Gloucestershire, where she was to pass the war years very happily. The girls would live at Royal
Lodge for the time being, for the house should be safe enough from aerial attack, and amid familiar surroundings it was hoped that their lives could retain at least a modicum of normality. The King
and Queen lived largely at Buckingham Palace, feeling that it was important to remain in the capital and share whatever dangers were to come. They spoke to the princesses by telephone at six
o’clock every evening but saw them only at weekends, whichthey spent at Windsor. Both the sovereign and his consort practised shooting with rifles and pistols and, when
travelling, the King sometimes carried a sten gun. Should the Germans invade, the Queen declared that: ‘I shall not go down like the others.’ The monarchies of Belgium and Denmark were
trapped by the invaders when German forces overran western Europe in May 1940. Those of Norway and the Netherlands had to flee. The British monarchy was determined to fight. Even Queen Mary toted a
pistol.
    And there were some dangerous moments. In September 1940, two days after the start of the Blitz, a bomb fell on the Palace. It did not explode and the King carried on working in