The late Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip’s only daughter, Princess Anne, has led a relatively quiet and more private life than many of her nieces and nephews. But while she tends to stay out of the spotlight, Anne is reported to be one of the busiest working senior members of the royal family.
For such a seemingly traditional family, the royal family has had some drastic changes in recent years. After Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made their royal departure in March 2020, many pieces were left out of place as the family worked at figuring out how to move forward. Following that, Anne took on more responsibilities, and she remained a stable, if quiet, figure in the royal family since.
Another big change hit the royal family when Queen Elizabeth passed away peacefully on Sept. 8, 2022, at Balmoral. She was surrounded by family and loved ones. However, not all of her children were able to make it to be by her side in time. But Anne, her only daughter, was with her all along. In fact, she was the one to sound the family alarm, reported the Mirror.
Ever since her dear mother’s passing, Anne has dutifully played the role of the loyal daughter, still by her side even in death. As she undertook the journey from Balmoral to Edinburgh to travel alongside her mother’s coffin, Anne’s stoic and grief-stricken face was a sign of how much she truly loved her mother, the late queen.
Anne, a rebel in her youth, has spoken about the many unusual and non-traditional moments in her lifetime. Although she remains under the radar these days in comparison to other royals, Anne’s adventurous side and feminine grace are perhaps what most closely ties her to her late mother.
Prince Harry, Princess Anne (2022), (Jon Super – WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Anne’s calm and grace in the face of tremendous grief following her mother’s death has not gone unnoticed. She was widely praised by the media for her composure and dutifulness during royal processions. Television personality Piers Morgan tweeted praise for her loyalty after she traveled six hours behind the coffin carrying Queen Elizabeth II as it traveled from Balmoral Castle to Edinburgh. He said the princess royal “never gets enough credit for her own selfless devotion to duty & decorum,” before adding she “represents the very best of royalty.”
Anne was also a picture of grace when greeting Queen Elizabeth II‘s coffin, which arrived from Balmoral to Holyrood on Sept. 11, 2022, dipping down into a low curtsy as a sign of deep respect.
The only daughter of the queen played a central role in all of her mother’s funeral events and was the only female member of the royal household to take part in the historic procession for the queen’s state funeral on Sept. 19, 2022. She joined her brothers – King Charles III, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward – to follow on foot behind the queen’s coffin from Westminster Hall to Westminster Abbey to the service, from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch and a smaller procession through the roads of Windsor to St. George’s Chapel, the queen’s final resting place.
The princess royal was in full military garb in the rank of admiral of the Royal Navy, which included a double-breasted jacket, a standing collar lined with gold, a full dress sword belt with three stripes and a white and navy tricorn hat.
The sight of the calm and self-possessed Anne in military dress took many back to the queen’s early days when she would don military attire during the Trooping the Colour early in her reign.
King Charles III, Anne, Princess Royal, Prince Andrew, Duke of York and Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex (2022), (Samir Hussein/WireImage/Getty Images)
Royal style author Bethan Holt told PEOPLE the 72-year-old’s poised and polished demeanor painted a powerful image of femininity.
“Anne looked empowered and elegant, but I also think she almost carried on that legacy of her mother being a woman in a man’s world and rising to the challenges of that,” Holt said.
“There was something very powerful about seeing a royal woman wearing uniform so proudly during the mourning period. It reminded me of those images of the queen in her military attire during Trooping the Colour parades earlier in her reign,” the author of “The Queen: 70 Years of Majestic Style” said.
“It was such a strong and refreshing alternative to that fairytale princess cliché,” she added.
Days after the queen’s passing, Princess Anne, who was by her mother’s side in her last days at Balmoral, shared a loving farewell message accompanied by an endearing mother-daughter picture on social media.
“I was fortunate to share the last 24 hours of my dearest Mother’s life. It has been an honour and a privilege to accompany her on her final journeys,” she wrote.
She continued, “Witnessing the love and respect shown by so many on these journeys has been both humbling and uplifting. We will all share unique memories. I offer my thanks to each and every one who share our sense of loss.”
“We may have been reminded how much of her presence and contribution to our national identity we took for granted,” she added, ending her statement with “To my mother, The Queen, thank you.”
Princess Anne, Queen Elizabeth (1969), (Fox Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Do you feel like Princess Anne represents the very best of the British royal family? Do you think she would have made a good queen? Let us know, and be sure to pass this on to family, friends and fans of the royal family.
