The Queen Mum

Book excerpt: From her birth in Scotland at the dawn of the 20th century, through her roles as Queen, mother and finally royal great grand-mother, the Queen Mum has experienced all the dramas both of her own family and of the country at large. This account follows all the key moments of this extraordinary life. She was catapulted from the quiet confines of her domestic circle by her marriage to the Duke of York. Her husband's unexpected elevation to the crown in 1936 following the Abdication Crisis of Edward VIII caused her to become the cornerstone of the monarchy. Cutting a surprisingly modern figure at variance with her later image of genial conservatism, the Queen Mum was almost the Princess Di of her day. A tower of strength for the nation through World War II, she overcame the sorrow of the death of her husband to carve a new role as, simply, the Queen Mum.