The Queen has started 2022 in mourning following another death of one of her closest friends.
- Fresh heartache for the Queen who starts 2022 in mourning following the death of another of her lady-in-waiting.
- Her Majesty has up to five ladies-in-waiting who assist with public duties and to deal with correspondence but has lost two in December alone.
- This royal news comes as Prince William and Kate Middleton share rare unseen photo to celebrate start of the new year.
The Queen has started the New Year in mourning after learning that another of her lady-in-waiting has died.
While many people celebrated starting 2022 with family and friends, the Queen is experiencing a more sombre start to the New Year after discovering over the festive season that another of her ladies in waiting has died.
Ann Fortune FitzRoy, Dowager Duchess of Grafton, died on 3rd December at the age of 101. And Diana Maxwell, Lady Farnham, died on 29th December at the age of 90.
Her Majesty typically has up to five ladies-in-waiting - and these are unpaid positions in which she is helped with public duties and correspondence - with the most senior of these is Lady Susan Hussey of North Bradley, 82, known affectionately to staff as “number one head girl”.
But with the news that two of her close confident have passed away, the Queen is expected to be feeling saddened as the New Year starts and royal duties recommence.
A royal source told the Telegraph about the queen’s response to losing her friends. “It has not been a good year for the Queen—losing her husband and then the Duchess of Grafton and now Lady Farnham,” the source said.
“They were dear friends who supported the Queen on official duties. Unfortunately, a sad consequence of living a long life is that you have to say goodbye to a lot of people you care about.”
The Queen's annual Christmas speech was broadcast at 3pm on Christmas Day and if you missed it you can catch a clip of it below...
Sally Bedell Smith explained what makes a lady-in-waiting in 2012’s Elizabeth the Queen. She wrote, 'They are almost exclusively drawn from the aristocracy, many of them are friends of the royal family, and all have shared interests, inbred caution, an intricate understanding of court etiquette, and sociable personalities.'
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVLNAXOH3M0
The Queen was forced to cancel her Christmas at Sandringham as a result of the rising Omicron variant and she also expressed her sadness over the death of Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
The palace uploaded a statement to Instagram and captioned it, 'The Queen has sent a message of condolence on the passing of Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Slide two shows Her Majesty and The Duke of Edinburgh meeting Archbishop Tutu in 2004 following the Commonwealth Day Service at Westminster Abbey.'
It is not yet known whether the Queen will have someone join her remaining lady in waitings.
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