Queen Elizabeth: The Ultimate Grandmother
In the United States. National Grandparents' Day is the first Sunday after Labor Day. This year, the special day is celebrated on September 9. In the United Kingdom, it is not celebrated until the first Sunday in October. Therefore this article is in time for both countries.
According to Good Housekeeping, Queen Elizabeth is considered the ultimate grandmother. The magazine gives examples of why the Queen of England is said to be a pretty cool grandmother.
Queen Elizabeth's Grandchildren
We know Prince William and Prince Harry are Queen Elizabeth's grandchildren because they are in public more than the other grandchildren. However, the 92-year-old monarch has four children, eight grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren.
Queen Elizabeth has been present in all her grandchildren and great-grandchildren's lives. Even though some of the children have not been in the public, their "Granny" has been quite involved in their lives. For example, she attended their baptisms, and they are all around her during special royal holidays.
A Grandmother's Love
At the christening of her first grandchild in 1977, the Queen was photographed tickling Peter Phillip. The ultimate grandmother used to take time out of her busy day and read to her grandchildren when they were younger.
She enjoyed taking them on special outings so they could learn about the things she did as the Queen of England. One trip, in particular, was the 1988 cruise of the Western Isles on board the royal yacht Britannia. Today, the vessel is retired and is a Scotland tourist attraction.
The grandmother took her grandchildren to church with her even without their own parents. In 1991, the Queen spent an entire day at Port Regis School when Zara and Peter Phillips were students. During her visit, she was impressed with Peter's science project and Zara's gymnastic presentation.
Because Prince Charles is the first in line to the throne of England, he is in the news more than his three siblings. The others are so seldom in the news that people tend to forget about Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward.
The birth of the three children of Prince William and Catherine pushed their grandfather's siblings farther down the line for the throne. The new ruling that females could be in line made the males go down even farther with the birth of Princess Charlotte. For instance, at one time Prince Harry was third in line. Now, he is sixth. Queen Elizabeth's son, Prince Andrew is seventh, and Queen Elizabeth's second child, Princess Anne is now thirteenth.
Children
Name
| Date of Birth
| In Line to the Throne
|
|---|---|---|
Prince Charles
| November 14, 1948
| 1st
|
Princess Anne
| August 15, 1950
| 13th
|
Prince Andrew
| February 19, 1960
| 7th
|
Prince Edward
| March 10, 1964
| 10th
|
Grandchildren
Name
| Age
| Parents
| In Line to the Throne
|
|---|---|---|---|
Prince Peter Philips
| 40
| Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips
| 14th
|
Princess Zara Tindall
| 37
| Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips; married to Mike Tindall
| 17th
|
Prince William
| 36
| Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana
| 2nd
|
Prince Harry
| 33
| Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana
| 6tth
|
Princess Beatrice
| 29
| Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York
| 8th
|
Princess Eugenie
| 28
| Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York
| 9th
|
Lady Louise Windsor
| 14
| Prince Edward and Sophie, the Countess of Wessex
| 12th
|
James, Viscount Severn
| 10
| Prince Edward and Sophie, the Countess of Wessex
| 11th
|
Queen Elizabeth is fond of her young grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She has attended their christenings. The entire royal family spends the Christmas holidays at the Queen's Sandringham estate. Needless to say, that gathering is a very big one that has grown over the years.
Zara took up her grandmother's favorite hobby and became an equestrian. She won a silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics in the equestrian event.
"I still think of her as just my grandmother, really."
--- Prince William told Katie Couric in 2012.
Great-Grandchildren
Name
| Date of Birth
| Parents
|
|---|---|---|
Savannah Philips
| December 29, 2010
| Prince Peter Phillips and Autumn Kelly
|
Isla Phillips
| March 29, 2012
| Prince Peter Phillips and Autumn
|
Prince George
| July 22, 2013
| Prince William and Catherine
|
Mia Grace Tndall
| January 17, 2014
| Zara and Mike Tindall
|
Princess Charlotte
| May 2, 2015
| Prince William and Catherine
|
Prince Louis
| April 23, 2018
| Prince William and Catherine
|
Lena Elizabeth Tindall
| June 18, 2018
| Zara and Mike Tindall
|
The Queen's youngest great-grandchild is named after her. Lena Elizabeth Tindall is the daughter of the monarch's granddaughter, Zara. Lena was born just two months after Prince Louis who is fifth in line.
"I find my grandmother inspiring every day because her overwhelming sense of duty is linked with an overwhelming curiosity."
--Princess Beatrice told Hello! in 2017.
England's monarch loves taking family photos. She sits front and center with her family surrounding her. The family portraits are seen throughout the palace.
In the documentary, Our Queen at 90, the Duchess of Cambridge confirmed that Queen Elizabeth loves to spoil her great-grandchildren by bringing them a gift from her trips.
Nicknames for the Cool Grandmother
Ordinary people address Queen Elizabeth as "Her Royal Majesty." The Queen’s grandchildren have some affectionate nicknames for her that they use in private.
- Granny
- Gran
- Gary (before young children could say "Granny)
- Prince George calls her "Gan Gan"
