Queen Elizabeth II was one of the longest-living members of the royal family, who expired at the age of 96. She passed away on September 8, 2022, in Balmoral, after ruling England and other commonwealth nations for almost 71 years. After her death, the legacy of the Empire is forwarded to the children of Queen Elizabeth.
The royal family is often seen to be together on every happy or sorrowful occasion, which makes their family history interesting. Today, we will get some insight into the lives of Queen Elizabeth’s children and her relationship with them.
Who Are The Children of Queen Elizabeth II?
Queen Elizabeth has four children with Prince Phillips- one girl and three boys. Let us read about their life, childhood, and their relationship with their mother in detail.
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Prince Charles III
In the year 1948, Queen Elizabeth became a mother for the first time. Charles Philip Arthur George was born on November 14, at Buckingham Palace. She was delighted at the birth of her child and brought in the best of everything to ensure he had an amazing childhood.
However, when Charles was an infant, Queen was often absent and traveling overseas to be with Prince Philip in Malta. Prince Philip, at that time, was in the Royal Navy, and he was posted in Malta for the first two years of Charles’ birth. However, when Charles was two years old, Prince Philips returned to the palace, and he and the queen spent quality time with their son.
When Queen Elizabeth was coronated in 1953, Prince Charles was four years old. Because of her duty as a queen, she then had to travel around the commonwealth nations while her children stayed back at the palace with their caretakers. A lonely childhood made Charles an introvert. He was then sent off to the Gordonstound boarding school in Scotland, where he became an avid and experienced Polo player.
After that, Charles departed for the Royal Navy. After completing his term in the Navy, he married Lady Diana Spencer in 1981. However, they got divorced, and a year later, Lady Diana was killed in a car crash. In 2005, Charles married Camilla Parker-Bowles, whom he met in a polo match during her school time. It was speculated that the affair between Charles and Camillia, which had been ongoing since their school time, was the reason Charles and Diana got divorced.
After serving as the Prince of Wales for a considerably long period of time, Charles III became the King of the United Kingdom after the death of her mother in September 2022. At present, he is 73 years old.
The Queen’s Relationship with Prince Charles
For Queen Elizabeth II, managing her role towards her country and her children was quite a challenging task. She became a mother over 70 years ago with her first son Prince Charles II. However, initially, she was a bit more conservative and was unable to focus much on the upbringing of her children. With time, however, she became more flexible and indulged in the life of her children.
When the queen was coronated, she had two children- Charles and Anne, who were quite young. She had to go on a six-month tour to the Commonwealth nations soon after her coronation. The queen believed it to be better to leave the children in the comforts of their homes rather than drag them around the world. Consequently, she stayed away from her children during their infant age.
Consequently, the children were taken care of by the nannies and the household staff. This was a common tradition in the generation and class that she was in. Thus, Charles’ bond with her mother wasn’t as strong as it was with his nannies and his grandmother.
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Princess Anne
On 15 August 1950, Princess Anne Elizabeth Alice Lousie was born to Prince Philip and Elizabeth. She was born at the Clarence House– London’s royal residence, where the prince and Elizabeth lived till 1953. She automatically became second in line after Prince Charles at that time. However, with subsequent royal births of Queen Elizabeth’s children and grandchildren, she became 14th in the line of succession.
At present, she is 72 years old and holds the title of Princess Royal and Anne. Since childhood, she has always been in the limelight by the media and the press, who nicknamed her “Her Royal Rudeness” because of her rude behavior and her forthright manner. She wasn’t too fond of the royal walkabouts and avoided public gatherings.
In another incident, at a NATO leader’s reception at Buckingham Palace, she appeared to snub Donald Trump when he was the President of the United States! In the year 1971, she was named BBC Sports Personality of the Year for her performance as an equestrian. To this, she reacted by saying that horsing was the best way of doing anything outside the royal family!
The princess has been married twice. Her first marriage was with Captain Mark Phillips in 1973. They had two children together- Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall. They separated in 1989. In 1992 however, Anne married Vice Admiral Timothy Laurence, who is her husband today. Anne did not give HRH titles to any of her children to make life easier and normal for them. However, her children also studied in the Gordonstoun school in Scotland, where the Princes also studied.
Her Relationship with Her Mother
Anne was quite close to and fond of her mother. They used to spend Friday night together when their maid went off for a leave, which was the favorite day of the princess and her mother. She also received a lot of life lessons and advice about fashion and clothes from her mother.
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Prince Andrew
Prince Andrew was born in 1960 when the Queen had completed her reign of eight years. He is around 12 years younger than Prince Charles. Andrew Alberth Christian Edward was the Duke of York and was born in Buckingham Palace.
He was home-schooled till the age of 8 and went to Gordonstoun after preparatory school. In 1986, Andrew married Sarah Fergie Ferguson. They had two beautiful daughters- Beatrice and Eugenie. However, after 10 years of togetherness, the couple got divorced in 1996.
Andrew became a part of a scandal recently when his name was associated with a convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. He made some allegations about Prince Andrew and his involvement in sexual offenses, and later in 2019, he died in prison. Also, Virginia Roberts Giuffre made accusations against him pertaining to sexual impropriety.
His image was tainted, and in 2019, he witnessed a wave of criticism against him. Consequently, Prince Andrew announced that he would step back from public duties. He still remains an important part of the family, howsoever.
Andrew’s Relationship with Her Mother
Till that time, the Queen had become more flexible and warmer. Consequently. She stepped back from her royal duties to be able to spend more time with her children. She even started going on holidays with her children and taking them with her to her trips in foreign countries.
In recent times, the relationship of Andrew with his mother and other members of the royal family was tainted because of his connection with Jeffrey Epstein.
At present, he is not a working royal. However, his mother still spent time with him and was often seen alongside him, attending church or riding horses. He remained to be a part of the family but away from the royal and public views.
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Prince Edward
Edward is the youngest of the children of Queen Elizabeth II. He was born in 1964 and is around 4 years younger than his brother Prince Andrew. His birth broke a tradition as he was the first child to be born while Prince Philip was also in the delivery room, holding Elizabeth’s hands. The Prince was fascinated by the idea of involving fathers in childbirth after reading women’s magazines stressing its importance.
Edward was seen in a documentary about the royal family when he was just 4 years old. However, after that, the queen has tried to keep her away from the spotlight as much as possible. In 1999, he married Sophie Rhys-Jones, and they became parents to Lady Louise Windsor and James Viscount Severn.
Prince Edward, unlike his siblings, was very fond of the arts. He worked as a production assistant for a Theatre Company and also indulged in his own ventures in the entertainment industry. He once even brought in his family members to participate in “Its a Knockout,” which was a British game show.
Currently, he is a full-time royal and the Earl of Wessex.
The Relationship of the Queen with Edward
At the time of Edward’s birth, the Queen had become a playful mother who used to relax with her children and spend quality time with them. Consequently, her relationship with her youngest child is the closest and cordial. Even after his marriage, Prince Edward and his wife Sophie continued to visit the Queen on weekends and spend time with them. Also, the queen tried to remain an active part of her grandchildren till her last time.
After being occupied by her duties as the Queen for the initial years, Queen Elizabeth II comprehended the pleasure of living and loving the family. This is why she developed in her heart great importance for spending time with her family while also being emotionally reserved at the same time. However, all in all, she was a great mother and a grandmother.
Final Words
The relationship between Queen Elizabeth and her children has been quite complex yet dotting at the same time. Despite being a great celebrity and at a vital statute for so many years, she managed to spend amazing family time every now and then, and that is why her family still stands together in every high and lows.
