Kate Clements, IWM curator: "The King’s sister, Princess Mary – known as the Princess Royal, was also involved in the war effort. They wanted to keep people’s spirits up during the war years and took on the role of boosting morale with fervour. The King and Queen made many visits to areas that had bombed during the Blitz, as well as to serving personnel, to munitions factories, to RAF bases and Royal Naval ships, and to troops training for combat. Now we can look the East End in the eye.' The Queen is reported to have said: 'I am glad we have been bombed. Rather than move away from the danger, the King and Queen decided to remain at Buckingham Palace in solidarity with those living through the Blitz. In September 1940, five high explosive bombs were dropped on Buckingham Palace. Newsreel: "Making rapid progress withe her training as an ATS Second Subaltern, Princess Elizabeth has now passed her tests as a fully trained motor driver and mechanic."Īt the outset of the war, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth decided that they would not be seen to be hiding away from the war. And it was a decision that would shape her life and reign. ![]() It was an unprecedented decision – this would make her the first woman in the Royal Family to become a full-time member of the armed services. ![]() Within a year of turning 18, Elizabeth would sign up for service. Elizabeth was determined to ‘do her bit’ for the war effort, as so many of her peers were. Her teenage years had been against the backdrop of the Second World War. ![]() In 1945, Life magazine published an article about Princess Elizabeth. It reported that King George VI had ruled, that “ training as a princess outweighed the nation’s increasing manpower problems and that ‘Betts’ should not join any of the women’s auxiliaries, nor work in a factory”.īut the King would not get his way. In April 1944, the young Princess had turned 18.
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