helenaaurellia:Fortune Fitzroy, The Duchess of GraftonQueen Elizabeth II’s Mistress of the Rob

helenaaurellia:Fortune Fitzroy, The Duchess of GraftonQueen Elizabeth II’s Mistress of the Robes for 54 years,and Lady in Waiting for 13 years before that, she died in 2021 at the age of 101.  She had been presented to George VI and Queen Elizabeth at the 1938 court,and was a nurse during World War II. She then spent two years working with disabled children before marrying the future duke.She also was the youngest female magistrate in the UK, having been appointed to the London County Juvenile Courts at the age of 29.As Mistress of the Robes, she was responsible for being in charge of the Queen’s Ladies in Waiting. She was actually appointed while still Countess of Euston,since her husband only became a duke a few years after the queen promoted her. Elizabeth II must have liked her enough to be willing to break tradition by having a future duchess instead of a current duchess. (Her husband, when Earl of Euston, had been considered a possible husband for Princess Elizabeth by the king and queen. By most accounts,Princess Elizabeth was too busy thinking about Prince Philip of Greece to consider the Earl,though she agreed with her friends when they said he was very handsome.)The Duchess accompanied the queen on many state visits and performed faultlessly. On one of the worst state visits of the Queen’s life, the one to Morocco in 1980, King Hassan ordered the Duchess and another Lady in Waiting, Mrs.Dugdale, to leave the palace, even though it had been planned that they stay. The two women left without a word, calmly and with great dignity,refusing to be embarrassed or make a fuss even as the king tried to humiliate them.When her husband died she moved to a London flat, and other residents of the building were often surprised to see the queen waiting in the lobby for the elevator,visiting her old friend. Just before lockdown, the queen presented the traditional 100th birthday card to her friend in person.The Duchess liked to watch royal dramas like The Young Victoria and point out the mistakes in Court Etiquette. When she watched The Crown, she would often asked  “Can the general public see this?” -- source link
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