Queen Elizabeth II Had a Spoiled Childhood But There Was 1 Thing Her Family Refused to Give Her
It’s no secret that royal kids often grow up in a life of wealth and privileges. Queen Elizabeth II, who grew up in the 1930s and and 1940s, was given many nice things by her parents. However, she did not always get everything she wanted. In fact, there was still something her royal family refused to give her.
What was Queen Elizabeth’s childhood like?
Her Majesty was born as the elder daughter of King George VI and Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (also known today as The Queen Mother). She had a younger sister named Margaret.
When Elizabeth was born, she was actually not expected to become a monarch. Her uncle Edward was the oldest child in his family and became king in 1936 when Elizabeth was 10. However, Edward abdicated after less than a year on the throne, and Elizabeth’s father became king.
As the heir presumptive, Elizabeth was, then, given lessons on constitutional history and law. She also learned languages such as French and German.
What did Queen Elizabeth’s family refuse to give her?
Like many royal children, Elizabeth and her sister had luxuries a lot of people could only dream of. They had nannies, governesses, and household staff. They also had a playhouse that came with indoor plumping and electricity.
However, Elizabeth reportedly craved some pieces of normal life, and her family would not give them to her. According to Dr. Glenn Wilson, Elizabeth and Margaret were quite isolated from most other children their age.
“The princesses were very much isolated from other children,” he said in the 2013 documentary “The Majestic Life of Queen Elizabeth II,” according to Express. “Hence, they interacted with each other and paradoxically they wold have developed an intense interest in anything ordinary.”
He added, “What is it like to ride on the tube? Or they would look another children playing at a distance and wish they could talk with them and make friends with them.”
At some point, Elizabeth even wanted to join the Girl Guides (similar to the Girl Scouts in the United States). She was not allowed to mingle with normal children, so instead, as Southern Living wrote, she and her sister formed a troop in Buckingham Palace made up of other royal kids and those of palace employees.
Princess Diana wanted to give her sons a more normal upbringing
While Elizabeth’s parents likely thought that isolating her from normal kids was for the best, later generations of royals eventually abandoned this mindset.
Princess Diana, who married Prince Charles in 1981, helped her kids to have a more normal upbringings. She allowed them to attend schools with other children (and she often walked them there herself). She also took them to fast food restaurants and amusement parks.
Diana and Charles’ sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, ended up marrying women with commoner backgrounds. The new generation of royals seem to put more effort into integrating their kids with society around them instead of hiding them behind palace walls.
