In the later years of Queen Victoria’s life, she was given the nickname the ‘grandmother of Europe’ as many of her nine children married into European royalty.
These (arguably strategic) marriages meant Victoria’s great-granddaughter, the late Queen Elizabeth II, was directly related to over a quarter of the remaining 25 royal families across the globe.
And much like the reality of other, less regal households, the Queen was closer to some relatives than others.
It’s reported that she named Charles after a member of the Norwegian royal family in honour of their close friendship, while on a less family friendly note, her Diamond Jubilee celebrations were boycotted by Spanish royals due to a longstanding dispute.
However, it wasn’t just European monarchies that the Queen created unique bonds with. Here, we take a look at the late monarch’s ties to royalty all over the globe.
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Out of all the Royal Families she was related to, the royal family of Norway was said to be especially important to Queen Elizabeth, with the close relationship between the two families being something that was present throughout the monarch’s life, with King Haakon VII and Crown Prince Olav taking refuge in London during World War Two.
The young Elizabeth developed a close relationship with Haakon, known to the family as ‘Uncle Charles’, with her son, the newly appointed King Charles III said to have been named after him.
This bond between the two families remained throughout the Queen’s life, with Norway being the first non-commonwealth country she visited after her coronation in 1955.
The relationship has continued through the new generations of royals with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visiting Norway in 2018. Crown Prince Haakon and the Crown Princess of Mette-Marit were meant to be undertaking a state visit to the United Kingdom this week, which has since been cancelled following the Queen’s death.
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The late monarch’s familial ties were prominent across Europe, with the Queen also related to Spanish royalty.
The two families had a close relationship, with Spain’s royals referring to the Queen as ‘Tia Lilibet’ during the many state visits that took place between the two countries.
However, despite being blood relatives, a shadow has remained over the relationship in the form of Gibraltar.
The British Overseas Territory has been a source of dispute between the British and Spanish royals with King Juan Carlos refusing to attend the wedding of King Charles and Lady Diana Spencer over their planned honeymoon in Gibraltar.
This discourse was again seen in 2012, when Queen Sofia cancelled her attendance to celebrations for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee over Prince Edward‘s royal visit to Gibraltar.
The late queen was publicly cordial with the Dutch Royals, with the monarch attending a State visit of the country in 1958, as well as hosting King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima in Buckingham Palace as recently as 2018.
However, Queen Elizabeth was said to have disapproved of the late Queen Juliana’s decision to abdicate In 1980. In her 2005 book ‘The Firm’, Royal author Penny Junor wrote: ‘When she was nearing 60, her press secretary had his knuckles rapped. He rang the Queen from the squawk-box on his desk and told her that Queen Juliana of the Netherlands had just abdicated.
‘“Typical of the Dutch”, said the Queen, and hung up on him.’
While the Queen had no familial connection to Moroccan royalty, her state visit in 1980 to the country was certainly memorable.
Described by a Foreign Office Official as a trip where ‘nothing that had previously been arranged took place as arranged,’ and later dubbed the ‘tour from hell’ the monarch was forced to wait in the hot Moroccan sun while her host sat in a air-conditioned caravan.
This disorganisation paled into insignificance when our late sovereign was forced to change cars several times on the road to Marrakesh on the whim of the King Hassan II.
The Queen, however, was said to take a liking to her host following her trip.
In a letter she later sent to him, our late sovereign thanked the King for his ‘extremely warm and generous hospitality’ and his ‘personal interest in our programme.’ This warmth still has an impact today, with King Mohammad VI’s message of condolence making reference to the Queen as a ‘great and special friend’ of Morocco.
Queen Margrethe of Denmark and Queen Elizabeth II had a close relationship throughout her life. A distant cousin of the Queen, the 14 year age gap between the monarchs did not harm their bond, with Queen Margrethe saying in an interview that they got on ‘very well indeed’.
In an interview with ITV, Queen Margrethe revealed that while she called our monarch Lilibet, she was given the sweet nickname of Daisy.
In a statement released by Queen Margrethe following the announcement of the monarch’s death, their close relationship was reaffirmed.
‘Your mother was very important to me and my family,’ she said, ‘we shall miss her terribly.’
As the Queen grew older, and her position as a strong stable monarch increased, she became an inspiration and a role model for the younger generation of global royals.
One person who saw the Queen as such was Queen Rania of Jordan who described her as ‘public service personified’.
She added that it was the late monarch she turned to for advice on how to balance duty with her personal life and ‘how to keep strong in the face of challenge.’
In an interview with ITV following the monarch’s death, she explained how Queen Elizabeth had given her ‘ a lot of guidance, just even small tips.’
It was this inspiration and kindness which led King Abdullah II say, after hearing the news of the Queen’s death, that she was ‘a partner for Jordan and a dear family friend.’
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