Prior to 1936, the Yorks had placed little emphasis on their daughters’ schooling. This was mainly due to the fact that the Duchess herself had never received much in the way of educational instruction, while the Duke harboured less-than-fond memories of a miserable childhood spent in a grim schoolroom, an experience he did not wish to replicate for Elizabeth and Margaret. Consequently, the girls’ education was limited to sporadic lessons in basic subjects, like reading, writing and a little mathematics, from their governess, Crawfie. Later, this rather meagre curriculum was supplemented with French lessons from another governess, along with history and geography tutorials from Queen Mary. In addition, both Elizabeth and Margaret devoted a significant amount of time to non-academic pursuits such as riding, music, dancing and drawing.
For Elizabeth, this all changed following her father’s ascension to the throne. As heiress presumptive, it was now imperative for the Princess to receive an education which would adequately prepare her for her future role as Queen. And so, from the age of thirteen, she began taking intensive lessons from the Vice-Provost of Eton College, Sir Henry Marten. He instructed her on a variety of difficult subjects including constitutional history, the role of monarchy, and parliamentary procedures. Her father also took an interest in her training, allowing her to look over his shoulder as he studied State papers, as well as quietly coaching her on the monarch’s duties and responsibilities.
Although this new state of affairs was a big departure for Elizabeth, she diligently applied herself to the task in hand. Displaying a sharp intellect, she absorbed information rapidly, and had little difficulty understanding even the most complex of subjects. It soon became obvious that, despite the shortcomings in her early education, Elizabeth was an exceptional student. It was not deemed necessary for Margaret to receive the same lessons as her sibling, and the exclusion irked her. But like it or not, the two sisters, who were once so close, were now on vastly divergent paths. With Elizabeth’s star now in the ascendancy, Margaret had little choice but to fade, somewhat begrudgingly, into the background – a situation which would be perpetuated long into adulthood.
Love at Third Sight
If the 1930s had been an eventful decade for the British people and their Royal Family, so too was it for many countries across Europe, but for altogether different reasons. The inexorable rise of Hitler and Nazism in Germany made for a climate of great political unease. Germany’s annexation of Austria in 1938, followed by the invasion of Czechoslovakia in early 1939 heightened tensions to such an extent that, by the summer of that year, war with Germany seemed to be nothing short of inevitable.
However, despite the ongoing threat posed by the Nazis, it seems the thirteen-year-old Princess Elizabeth’s attentions were directed elsewhere. On 22 July 1939, Elizabeth and Margaret accompanied their parents on a visit to the Royal Naval College in Dartmouth aboard HMY Victoria & Albert, with their father’s charismatic cousin, Lord Louis ‘Dickie’ Mountbatten, also in attendance. A recent outbreak of mumps in the College meant that, for part of the visit, the princesses were confined indoors while their parents carried out their various royal duties. If at first this seemed to be an inauspicious development, Elizabeth at least would soon be very thankful that their excursion had been curtailed.
On the suggestion of Lord Mountbatten, the sisters were left in the charge of his nephew, a certain Cadet Captain known as Prince Philip of Greece. Already in his final year of training at the College, the eighteen-year-old Philip, with his Scandinavian good looks and blonde hair, cut quite a dash – Elizabeth was immediately enthralled. In addition to his rather agreeable appearance, Philip, despite his family having recently fallen on hard times, had an impressive pedigree. Like Elizabeth and Margaret, he was a great-great-grandchild of Queen Victoria, and he also shared bloodlines with the Danish, Greek and Russian royal families – a suitable companion for the princesses if ever there was one.
While their paths had crossed on two previous family occasions, this was the first time Elizabeth and Margaret had spent any time with their handsome relation. And, it is fair to say that he made quite an impression on both of them – so much so he was invited to meet with the Royal Family again the following day. Lord Mountbatten recorded the event in his diary: ‘Philip came back on board V and A for tea and was a great success with the children.’ By all accounts, Philip did not display any romantic interest in Elizabeth during these meetings (she was, after all, only thirteen at the time), preferring instead to tease her sister, play croquet and devour several helpings of shrimp followed by banana splits. The same, however, cannot be said for Elizabeth – by the time the Victoria and Albert sailed out of Dartmouth, the Princess was well and truly smitten with her handsome cousin.
Unfortunately, Elizabeth had little time to bask in the glow of first love. Just six weeks after her meeting with Philip, Germany invaded Poland, and by 3 September, Britain was a country at war.