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The Windsor Diaries: A childhood with the Princesses
** SPECTATOR BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2020**
** TIMES BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2020**
** SUNDAY EXPRESS BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2020**
'A wonderful book' A. N. Wilson, Spectator , Books of the Year
'F unny, astute, poignant and historically fascinating' The Times
'A compelling and revealing insight into the teenage life of the then Princess Elizabeth and her sister Princess Margaret' Richard Kay, Daily Mail
'I loved reading this, so reminiscent of my own childhood' Anne Glenconner, author of Lady in Waiting
'Fascinating insight into Elizabeth as a teenager' OK! Magazine
************************
The Windsor Diaries are the never-before-seen diaries of Alathea Fitzalan Howard, who lived alongside the young Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret at Windsor Castle during the Second World War.
Alathea's home life was an unhappy one. Her parents had separated and so during the war she was sent to live with her grandfather, Viscount Fitzalan of Derwent, at Cumberland Lodge in Windsor Great Park. There Alathea found the affection and harmony she craved as she became a close friend of the two princesses, visiting them often at Windsor Castle, enjoying parties, balls, cinema evenings, picnics and celebrations with the Royal Family and other members of the Court.
Alathea's diary became her constant companion during these years as day by day she recorded every intimate detail of life with the young Princesses, often with their governess Crawfie, or with the King and Queen.
Written from the ages of sixteen to twenty-two, she captures the tight-knit, happy bonds between the Royal Family, as well as the aspirations and anxieties, sometimes extreme, of her own teenage mind.
These unique diaries give us a bird's eye view of Royal wartime life with all of Alathea's honest, yet affectionate judgments and observations - as well as a candid and vivid portrait of the young Princess Elizabeth, known to Alathea as 'Lilibet', a warm, self-contained girl, already falling for her handsome prince Philip, and facing her ultimate the Crown.
** TIMES BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2020**
** SUNDAY EXPRESS BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2020**
'A wonderful book' A. N. Wilson, Spectator , Books of the Year
'F unny, astute, poignant and historically fascinating' The Times
'A compelling and revealing insight into the teenage life of the then Princess Elizabeth and her sister Princess Margaret' Richard Kay, Daily Mail
'I loved reading this, so reminiscent of my own childhood' Anne Glenconner, author of Lady in Waiting
'Fascinating insight into Elizabeth as a teenager' OK! Magazine
************************
The Windsor Diaries are the never-before-seen diaries of Alathea Fitzalan Howard, who lived alongside the young Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret at Windsor Castle during the Second World War.
Alathea's home life was an unhappy one. Her parents had separated and so during the war she was sent to live with her grandfather, Viscount Fitzalan of Derwent, at Cumberland Lodge in Windsor Great Park. There Alathea found the affection and harmony she craved as she became a close friend of the two princesses, visiting them often at Windsor Castle, enjoying parties, balls, cinema evenings, picnics and celebrations with the Royal Family and other members of the Court.
Alathea's diary became her constant companion during these years as day by day she recorded every intimate detail of life with the young Princesses, often with their governess Crawfie, or with the King and Queen.
Written from the ages of sixteen to twenty-two, she captures the tight-knit, happy bonds between the Royal Family, as well as the aspirations and anxieties, sometimes extreme, of her own teenage mind.
These unique diaries give us a bird's eye view of Royal wartime life with all of Alathea's honest, yet affectionate judgments and observations - as well as a candid and vivid portrait of the young Princess Elizabeth, known to Alathea as 'Lilibet', a warm, self-contained girl, already falling for her handsome prince Philip, and facing her ultimate the Crown.
368 pages, Paperback
First published October 8, 2020
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November 22, 2021
4 Stars
Fascinating and revealing account by Alathea Howard of life at Windsor during World War II.
Alathea's account of life at Windsor during the war contradicts several histories and biographies I've read about the British royal family. It's been written that the royal family gave up their lavish lifestyle and lived simply for the duration, but this memoir shows otherwise.
Much has been made of the fact, in various histories and biographies, that the Windsors adhered to the same rationing rules as the rest of the nation. Yet Alathea describes teas, lunches and dinners with the royals that clearly did not adhere to standard rations. No ordinary family of four would be able to collect enough eggs at one time (one egg per person a week) to serve curried eggs and chocolate souffle to a couple of dozen guests at a dinner party. Yes, people could keep chickens, but you still had to sell on the extra eggs or be fined. I'm also positive that not many British citizens got to eat fresh lobster, salmon, chicken, and orange salad (oranges were rationed and only for children) in 1944 and 1945 when the war had been going on for four long years. There was also plenty of Champagne and wine served at dinners and parties as well. About the only area in which they seem to have truly cut back is in clothing for Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret, who wore the same few outfits for most of the war.
The account of Princess Elizabeth's stint in the ATS (Auxiliary Territorial Service) was surprising. When the princess turned eighteen in April of 1944 she became eligible to enter one of the women's services. Alathea mentions that Elizabeth wanted to join the WRNS (Women's Royal Naval Service). Instead, in March of 1945 (nearly a year later) she entered the ATS, probably because their headquarters was at Windsor. After being given a driving course in and around Windsor for a couple of weeks (during which she remained at home), she went off to Camberley for three weeks of training. Thus ended Princess Elizabeth's active military service and, a few weeks later, the war. I was under the impression that her time on active duty, square bashing, cleaning toilets, repairing engines and whatever, was much longer. After her training was done, the princess's role was ceremonial. This makes sense as she was destined to be head of the armed services.
For the young princesses, life at Windsor was mostly boring. The same strict schedule every week, constantly chaperoned by governesses, no chance to be alone; even time with their friends included adult supervision. In all the years Alathea spent at Windsor, she was only totally alone with Princess Elizabeth a couple of times. It was an extremely protected life that left Elizabeth much less mature than her contemporaries. It's as though she was kept at about aged twelve until 1945 and then allowed to be sixteen instead of eighteen. I wonder if she was ever actually allowed to grow up since she's never had any real independence.
There is much here to engage the armchair historian, and I have to say it was certainly eye opening.
Fascinating and revealing account by Alathea Howard of life at Windsor during World War II.
Alathea's account of life at Windsor during the war contradicts several histories and biographies I've read about the British royal family. It's been written that the royal family gave up their lavish lifestyle and lived simply for the duration, but this memoir shows otherwise.
Much has been made of the fact, in various histories and biographies, that the Windsors adhered to the same rationing rules as the rest of the nation. Yet Alathea describes teas, lunches and dinners with the royals that clearly did not adhere to standard rations. No ordinary family of four would be able to collect enough eggs at one time (one egg per person a week) to serve curried eggs and chocolate souffle to a couple of dozen guests at a dinner party. Yes, people could keep chickens, but you still had to sell on the extra eggs or be fined. I'm also positive that not many British citizens got to eat fresh lobster, salmon, chicken, and orange salad (oranges were rationed and only for children) in 1944 and 1945 when the war had been going on for four long years. There was also plenty of Champagne and wine served at dinners and parties as well. About the only area in which they seem to have truly cut back is in clothing for Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret, who wore the same few outfits for most of the war.
The account of Princess Elizabeth's stint in the ATS (Auxiliary Territorial Service) was surprising. When the princess turned eighteen in April of 1944 she became eligible to enter one of the women's services. Alathea mentions that Elizabeth wanted to join the WRNS (Women's Royal Naval Service). Instead, in March of 1945 (nearly a year later) she entered the ATS, probably because their headquarters was at Windsor. After being given a driving course in and around Windsor for a couple of weeks (during which she remained at home), she went off to Camberley for three weeks of training. Thus ended Princess Elizabeth's active military service and, a few weeks later, the war. I was under the impression that her time on active duty, square bashing, cleaning toilets, repairing engines and whatever, was much longer. After her training was done, the princess's role was ceremonial. This makes sense as she was destined to be head of the armed services.
For the young princesses, life at Windsor was mostly boring. The same strict schedule every week, constantly chaperoned by governesses, no chance to be alone; even time with their friends included adult supervision. In all the years Alathea spent at Windsor, she was only totally alone with Princess Elizabeth a couple of times. It was an extremely protected life that left Elizabeth much less mature than her contemporaries. It's as though she was kept at about aged twelve until 1945 and then allowed to be sixteen instead of eighteen. I wonder if she was ever actually allowed to grow up since she's never had any real independence.
There is much here to engage the armchair historian, and I have to say it was certainly eye opening.
July 12, 2021
My Interest
Queen Elizabeth has had many a biographer in her 95 years. This book, while not a biography, is the personal diary of a “friend” from her childhood and teen years. Alathea Fitzalan Howard, had she been born a boy, would have ended up as the Duke of Norfolk–the U.K.s highest ranking Catholic outside the clergy and is the head of the College of Arms. This “College” is the organization that creates the Standards {flags] and coats of arms that relate to royalty and nobility. The Duke of Norfolk, then, is a very important man in the ceremonial world, for this position, like the Dukedom, is hereditary.
The Story
Alathea, was a very privileged girl–her grandfather lived in Windsor Great Park in a royal residence–Cumberland Lodge. She was a member of the Girl Guide [Girl Scout] troop started for the young princesses Elizabeth and Margaret and had known them in London. She also went to drawing lessons with the Princesses and to fun events like films and, later, to dinners and dances. She participated with them in the first pantomimes they did during the War as well. Being a little older than Princess Elizabeth, Alathea, saw herself as a judge of character, behavior, etc., of her younger future monarch (for by this time no one held out any hope of the then Queen Elizabeth (later known as Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother) producing at son at the age of 40+.
As I mentioned above, this was a personal diary. Alathea was very taken with royal life and adored the royal Princesses. She was snobbish to an extreme even for her day. She felt, as many others did, that it was wrong for the Princesses to act in their “pantos” with “common” schoolchildren. Today, no one thinks a thing of royal children acting in school plays, but of course, those are always at PRIVATE schools, lol.
What we do learn about the Queen is that she was kept sheltered, yes, but not nearly as much as the highly fictionalized (and hijacked) book by Marion Crawford, The Little Princesses, suggested. She did not confide in friends–or at least not in Alethea. She was rarely left alone and would sometimes bolt ahead of a group on a walk to just be alone. While the diary does not contain much new information, it does confirm what most have thought–Elizabeth was in love with Philip from the start, but it took him some time to be in love with her–that is to be expected when a girl is 13 and the young man is an 18-year-old Naval College cadet, but he did like and respect her. And, Elizabeth certainly did notice other men–Hugh Euston, the future Duke of Grafton, for example, but Philip always topped her list.
Alathea could be wisely cynical too–as when she says spots the truth of Princess Elizabeth’s “war” service. Of course it was a p.r. stunt. Did anyone want Margaret to end up Queen? Or worse, The Duke of Gloucester–known as the “unknown soldier”? No, war service with an actual “hot” war going on was pretty much a no-go for Elizabeth, just as going on the D-Day invasion was for her father and Churchill. Still, Princess Elizabeth she got to attend a real training classes with other ATS-recruit-pupils, and was taught to drive and to service car and truck engines. Best of all, she was allowed out unrecognized behind the wheel of car or truck in London–that was likely marvelous for her. It doesn’t matter that the war was all but over, it was an experience she badly needed.
Elizabeth is rightly identified as “no intellectual” but was obedient, quiet, reserved, and in short, a good choice for Queen. Margaret, on the other hand, was so loved and petted and admired that she was pretty much a brat–at least at the age she was in diaries (the end when she was about to be 15). Like everyone, Alathea finds Margaret great fun, but she sees the qualities in Elizabeth that made everyone so happy that she was the first born and heiress presumptive to the throne.
There isn’t much good royal gossip here beyond the fact that as children the current Duke of Kent and his sister Princess Alexandra could rarely be taken to events, even a royal family tea, together as they were uncontrollable together. What is nice to learn is that, though fictionalized, governess Marion Crawford’s memoirs were true in the portrayal of King George VI and the Queen Mother were loving, caring, and, for their time and class, hands-on parents who adored their daughter.
Alathea Herself
Had anyone known that this miserably unhappy young girl, later young woman, was cutting herself, I doubt she’d have been allowed near the Princesses. Her home life was one of rejection and misery. Her mother did not love her, told her she was not attractive, and basically never forgave her for not being a boy. She also thought she was “ruined” by the old fashioned life of the court and by the solitary life she led at Cumberland Lodge, though naturally takes no responsibility for her daughter living apart from her and her younger daughter. Alathea’s father was a weak man, his marriage to his wife is presented as in name only.
Alathea adores her much younger little sister, whom their mother likes. I had to wonder if Mummy had strayed [very likely from her lifestyle] and that maybe little sister wasn’t really Daddy’s child? For all that Althea, like a typical teenager, finds her grandfather irritating, he does seem to have cared about her and tried to show it by coming up to her room at bedtime or speaking with her or whatever. She rejects him at every turn.
Effectively an abandoned child, you can see all the usual behaviors of such children in Alathea. Her idolization of the royals as a “perfect” family with a loving father and mother–a contained little unit who enjoy the time they spend together. The Queen [later the Queen Mother] is kind to Alathea so she desperately wants to be cuddled and kissed by her and hangs onto every kind thing the Queen says to her. The cutting, the lack of love for her other family members, her suspicion of them, it is all sadly typical of abandonment.
I am sure Alathea would cringe knowing her “secret” fantasy of marrying and sleeping beside Hugh Euston [Fitzroy] (Earl of Euston, future Duke of Grafton) was now in a published book, but what a typical teenage girl fantasy. It was this type thing, more than the worship of the royals, that made me like this book and even it’s very troubled young author. Sadly, she realizes she is out-of-step with the young people of her generation and worse, knows that she is not what men desire.
I grew up like that so I totally related to this pain. (I was usually the “buddy” rarely the girl friend). By the end of the war, having never been kissed, she gives in to the first guy who tries (ditto) even though she doesn’t like him very much (ditto). She knows she is pushing away a good husband (ditto) when the one guy who does peruse her isn’t exciting enough for her. By war’s end, she feels she likely won’t be asked to be anyone’s wife. Eventually, she marries a younger son, but has no children. (I married after pushing away good men, I took the worst.)
I’m glad her nephew’s wife took care of the diaries and realized their significance to biographers of Queen Elizabeth. First hand accounts of Her Majesty spanning several years of association are very, very rare. This is a good addition to the historical record of the Queen, Alathea’s own august family’s history, and of teenagers of her class during the war.
A note on the physical aspects of this book
It has delightful end papers–a wonderful map of Windsor that shows the places mentioned in the Diary.
Queen Elizabeth has had many a biographer in her 95 years. This book, while not a biography, is the personal diary of a “friend” from her childhood and teen years. Alathea Fitzalan Howard, had she been born a boy, would have ended up as the Duke of Norfolk–the U.K.s highest ranking Catholic outside the clergy and is the head of the College of Arms. This “College” is the organization that creates the Standards {flags] and coats of arms that relate to royalty and nobility. The Duke of Norfolk, then, is a very important man in the ceremonial world, for this position, like the Dukedom, is hereditary.
The Story
Alathea, was a very privileged girl–her grandfather lived in Windsor Great Park in a royal residence–Cumberland Lodge. She was a member of the Girl Guide [Girl Scout] troop started for the young princesses Elizabeth and Margaret and had known them in London. She also went to drawing lessons with the Princesses and to fun events like films and, later, to dinners and dances. She participated with them in the first pantomimes they did during the War as well. Being a little older than Princess Elizabeth, Alathea, saw herself as a judge of character, behavior, etc., of her younger future monarch (for by this time no one held out any hope of the then Queen Elizabeth (later known as Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother) producing at son at the age of 40+.
As I mentioned above, this was a personal diary. Alathea was very taken with royal life and adored the royal Princesses. She was snobbish to an extreme even for her day. She felt, as many others did, that it was wrong for the Princesses to act in their “pantos” with “common” schoolchildren. Today, no one thinks a thing of royal children acting in school plays, but of course, those are always at PRIVATE schools, lol.
What we do learn about the Queen is that she was kept sheltered, yes, but not nearly as much as the highly fictionalized (and hijacked) book by Marion Crawford, The Little Princesses, suggested. She did not confide in friends–or at least not in Alethea. She was rarely left alone and would sometimes bolt ahead of a group on a walk to just be alone. While the diary does not contain much new information, it does confirm what most have thought–Elizabeth was in love with Philip from the start, but it took him some time to be in love with her–that is to be expected when a girl is 13 and the young man is an 18-year-old Naval College cadet, but he did like and respect her. And, Elizabeth certainly did notice other men–Hugh Euston, the future Duke of Grafton, for example, but Philip always topped her list.
Alathea could be wisely cynical too–as when she says spots the truth of Princess Elizabeth’s “war” service. Of course it was a p.r. stunt. Did anyone want Margaret to end up Queen? Or worse, The Duke of Gloucester–known as the “unknown soldier”? No, war service with an actual “hot” war going on was pretty much a no-go for Elizabeth, just as going on the D-Day invasion was for her father and Churchill. Still, Princess Elizabeth she got to attend a real training classes with other ATS-recruit-pupils, and was taught to drive and to service car and truck engines. Best of all, she was allowed out unrecognized behind the wheel of car or truck in London–that was likely marvelous for her. It doesn’t matter that the war was all but over, it was an experience she badly needed.
Elizabeth is rightly identified as “no intellectual” but was obedient, quiet, reserved, and in short, a good choice for Queen. Margaret, on the other hand, was so loved and petted and admired that she was pretty much a brat–at least at the age she was in diaries (the end when she was about to be 15). Like everyone, Alathea finds Margaret great fun, but she sees the qualities in Elizabeth that made everyone so happy that she was the first born and heiress presumptive to the throne.
There isn’t much good royal gossip here beyond the fact that as children the current Duke of Kent and his sister Princess Alexandra could rarely be taken to events, even a royal family tea, together as they were uncontrollable together. What is nice to learn is that, though fictionalized, governess Marion Crawford’s memoirs were true in the portrayal of King George VI and the Queen Mother were loving, caring, and, for their time and class, hands-on parents who adored their daughter.
Alathea Herself
Had anyone known that this miserably unhappy young girl, later young woman, was cutting herself, I doubt she’d have been allowed near the Princesses. Her home life was one of rejection and misery. Her mother did not love her, told her she was not attractive, and basically never forgave her for not being a boy. She also thought she was “ruined” by the old fashioned life of the court and by the solitary life she led at Cumberland Lodge, though naturally takes no responsibility for her daughter living apart from her and her younger daughter. Alathea’s father was a weak man, his marriage to his wife is presented as in name only.
Alathea adores her much younger little sister, whom their mother likes. I had to wonder if Mummy had strayed [very likely from her lifestyle] and that maybe little sister wasn’t really Daddy’s child? For all that Althea, like a typical teenager, finds her grandfather irritating, he does seem to have cared about her and tried to show it by coming up to her room at bedtime or speaking with her or whatever. She rejects him at every turn.
Effectively an abandoned child, you can see all the usual behaviors of such children in Alathea. Her idolization of the royals as a “perfect” family with a loving father and mother–a contained little unit who enjoy the time they spend together. The Queen [later the Queen Mother] is kind to Alathea so she desperately wants to be cuddled and kissed by her and hangs onto every kind thing the Queen says to her. The cutting, the lack of love for her other family members, her suspicion of them, it is all sadly typical of abandonment.
I am sure Alathea would cringe knowing her “secret” fantasy of marrying and sleeping beside Hugh Euston [Fitzroy] (Earl of Euston, future Duke of Grafton) was now in a published book, but what a typical teenage girl fantasy. It was this type thing, more than the worship of the royals, that made me like this book and even it’s very troubled young author. Sadly, she realizes she is out-of-step with the young people of her generation and worse, knows that she is not what men desire.
I grew up like that so I totally related to this pain. (I was usually the “buddy” rarely the girl friend). By the end of the war, having never been kissed, she gives in to the first guy who tries (ditto) even though she doesn’t like him very much (ditto). She knows she is pushing away a good husband (ditto) when the one guy who does peruse her isn’t exciting enough for her. By war’s end, she feels she likely won’t be asked to be anyone’s wife. Eventually, she marries a younger son, but has no children. (I married after pushing away good men, I took the worst.)
I’m glad her nephew’s wife took care of the diaries and realized their significance to biographers of Queen Elizabeth. First hand accounts of Her Majesty spanning several years of association are very, very rare. This is a good addition to the historical record of the Queen, Alathea’s own august family’s history, and of teenagers of her class during the war.
A note on the physical aspects of this book
It has delightful end papers–a wonderful map of Windsor that shows the places mentioned in the Diary.
April 25, 2021
These book is based on the diaries of Alathea Howard between 1940 to 1945.
Alathea was living with her grandfather in Windsor and got to become friendly with the Royal Family.
She wasn't close to her parents and found in the royal family the emblem of the perfect, warm, loving family.
Nice, interesting read.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Alathea was living with her grandfather in Windsor and got to become friendly with the Royal Family.
She wasn't close to her parents and found in the royal family the emblem of the perfect, warm, loving family.
Nice, interesting read.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
October 27, 2020
If reading a Royalty struck teenage girl’s diaries from age 16 to 22 is your cup of tea then perhaps you will take pleasure in reading these snippets into the often unhappy and bone crushingly boring life of the aristocratic Alathea Fitzalan Howard. She was wretchedly unhappy in that her parents were estranged from one another. While her bitchy mother constantly criticized her and swanned around having fun during the war years with her much younger daughter in tow, Alathea was sent to live in gloomy splendor with her grandfather, Fitzalan of Derwent, at Cumberland Lodge in Windsor Great Park.
Just a couple of castles away lived the Royal Family. King George and his Queen with their two princesses, Elizabeth the elder and Margaret the feisty younger one. No doubt the Queen felt sorry for this poor Catholic girl who had only her elderly aunt and grandfather as company. So she encouraged her two daughters’ friendship with Alathea, who joined them for art classes, picnics, dances, movie nights, balls and pantomimes, all designed to keep up the girls’ spirits during the bleak years of World War 11.
Alathea was brutally honest in her comments on her disapproval of the dowdy clothes the princesses wore and even their hair styles. The queen dressed them alike which Alathea regarded as a terrible thing to do to the older by four years, Elizabeth. No doubt the Royals were trying to set a good example by not permitting the princesses to wear new frocks very often as wartime restrictions made clothing difficult to buy. Alathea was fortunate in that her nanny, Ming Ming, made her lovely dresses and she didn’t care what people thought as long as she had nice clothes to wear.
In typical teenage fashion her diary entries veered drastically from the high notes when she was invited into the inner circle of the Royal Family to dejection when Princess Elizabeth didn’t seem to need her as a close friend to confide in because she was perfectly happy and content to spend time with her own small family. Alathea adored the queen who went out of her way to be kind to the lonely girl and when she danced with the King or sat next to him at table she was thrilled at the honor bestowed on her.
As Alathea entered her older teen years she took up volunteering at a nursing facility. Her duties were primarily cleaning and as she had servants to provide these services at home, she disliked it intensely and was often criticized by the nursing staff for her inattention to duty. Getting enough to eat seemed a highlight of her outings with the princesses and their nanny, Crawfie, who was a big hit as she was regarded as fun and not strict. The mentions of the deaths of soldiers whom she had met at dances didn’t seem to cause her too much sadness as this was war and that sort of thing happened.
Alathea was supposed to marry a well to do member of the old Catholic aristocracy, but the young men who were presented to her didn’t cause her any heart flutters and the job she most longed for, to be chosen as a lady in waiting to Princess Elizabeth never happened. Perhaps her Catholic faith was a deterrent of perhaps the queen thought a married woman would be more suitable.
There are countless mentions of how much the young Elizabeth or Lilibet as she was called by her family, doted on the very handsome Prince Phillip of Greece and how she kept a picture of Phillip by her bed. Unfortunately love and marriage came late to Alathea who married a second son in a registry office and there were no children from this union. So many of Alathea’s teenage dreams came to naught.
Had Alathea been born a boy, she would eventually have become the Duke of Norfolk, the head of England’s leading Catholic aristocratic family and Earl Marshal and inherited Arundel Castle. But two daughters determined an end to those ambitions and an end to the marriage of her parents who were forever disappointed in their female offspring.
Just a couple of castles away lived the Royal Family. King George and his Queen with their two princesses, Elizabeth the elder and Margaret the feisty younger one. No doubt the Queen felt sorry for this poor Catholic girl who had only her elderly aunt and grandfather as company. So she encouraged her two daughters’ friendship with Alathea, who joined them for art classes, picnics, dances, movie nights, balls and pantomimes, all designed to keep up the girls’ spirits during the bleak years of World War 11.
Alathea was brutally honest in her comments on her disapproval of the dowdy clothes the princesses wore and even their hair styles. The queen dressed them alike which Alathea regarded as a terrible thing to do to the older by four years, Elizabeth. No doubt the Royals were trying to set a good example by not permitting the princesses to wear new frocks very often as wartime restrictions made clothing difficult to buy. Alathea was fortunate in that her nanny, Ming Ming, made her lovely dresses and she didn’t care what people thought as long as she had nice clothes to wear.
In typical teenage fashion her diary entries veered drastically from the high notes when she was invited into the inner circle of the Royal Family to dejection when Princess Elizabeth didn’t seem to need her as a close friend to confide in because she was perfectly happy and content to spend time with her own small family. Alathea adored the queen who went out of her way to be kind to the lonely girl and when she danced with the King or sat next to him at table she was thrilled at the honor bestowed on her.
As Alathea entered her older teen years she took up volunteering at a nursing facility. Her duties were primarily cleaning and as she had servants to provide these services at home, she disliked it intensely and was often criticized by the nursing staff for her inattention to duty. Getting enough to eat seemed a highlight of her outings with the princesses and their nanny, Crawfie, who was a big hit as she was regarded as fun and not strict. The mentions of the deaths of soldiers whom she had met at dances didn’t seem to cause her too much sadness as this was war and that sort of thing happened.
Alathea was supposed to marry a well to do member of the old Catholic aristocracy, but the young men who were presented to her didn’t cause her any heart flutters and the job she most longed for, to be chosen as a lady in waiting to Princess Elizabeth never happened. Perhaps her Catholic faith was a deterrent of perhaps the queen thought a married woman would be more suitable.
There are countless mentions of how much the young Elizabeth or Lilibet as she was called by her family, doted on the very handsome Prince Phillip of Greece and how she kept a picture of Phillip by her bed. Unfortunately love and marriage came late to Alathea who married a second son in a registry office and there were no children from this union. So many of Alathea’s teenage dreams came to naught.
Had Alathea been born a boy, she would eventually have become the Duke of Norfolk, the head of England’s leading Catholic aristocratic family and Earl Marshal and inherited Arundel Castle. But two daughters determined an end to those ambitions and an end to the marriage of her parents who were forever disappointed in their female offspring.
December 26, 2020
Perfect for fans of 'The Crown,’ this is the kind of book you want to curl up with next to a roaring fire or on your next vacation. A fascinating, eyewitness account of the British Royal Family’s private life against the backdrop of the Second World War, ’The Windsor Diaries’ shows the King, the Queen, and the two princesses through the eyes of a girl who was invited into their home during Britain’s darkest hour. I could not put it down.
May 11, 2022
Fun reading for fans of the Crown and Royal family-interested folks in general. It was a random library pick for me and I was happily surprised that it turned out to be a bit of a page-turner. It was fascinating to read about what the young princesses and their friends were doing during the war years, as well as how they learned about and were influenced by wartime events.
The book is interesting even without the observations of the princesses, just read as a chronicle of a well-to-do young woman's experience in Britain during the war. I enjoy reading published diaries for many reasons, one of which is that I know that the authors of diaries are generally telling the truth, seeing as how at the time they aren't writing for publication (or for anyone's eyes but their own)!
The book is interesting even without the observations of the princesses, just read as a chronicle of a well-to-do young woman's experience in Britain during the war. I enjoy reading published diaries for many reasons, one of which is that I know that the authors of diaries are generally telling the truth, seeing as how at the time they aren't writing for publication (or for anyone's eyes but their own)!
October 27, 2021
When a friend reviewed “The Windsor Diaries,” I knew I needed to read it as well. These are the actual diaries of Alathea Fitzalan Howard, a well-to-do young woman who kept a diary daily for most of her 70-some years. This book was compiled by her husband's niece, who selected for this book the diaries from 1940-1945, when Alathea was 16 to 21. A year before her death, Alathea said, “I have often thought lately of giving it up (the diaries) but I can’t — so much of my life for so many years has gone into it and it is sometimes the only comfort I have.”
The diaries are interesting in themselves, for a look at what an English young woman’s life was like during WWII. Alathea makes much of hairstyles, what she and others wear, etc. She mentions bombings, FDR’s death, an assassination attempt on Hitler, etc.
But what makes Alathea’s diaries worthy of publishing is no doubt the fact that she was 2 years older than then-princess Elizabeth, and she was a frequent friend to the princesses, staying with them, taking classes with them, going to parties with them, etc.
I’m sure Alathea never dreamed these diaries would be made public, and so she is quite honest in her assessments of various things and people. Of young Princess Elizabeth: “How different she was from what Margaret is now — so much more serious and grown-up and yet not nearly so sweet and attractive.”
Alathea writes of her excitement whenever she is invited to Windsor to play with the princesses or take an art or dance class with them. “I feel I am one of the most fortunate people in the world.” She writes about the King and Queen coming into the bedroom to tell the girls goodnight, and she loves this so much. Alathea had a difficult home situation. Her parents lived apart, with her critical mother living away most of the time. Alathea was left with her largely quiet father and her grandfather — not the wonderful home life she observed among the royal family. I have thought this before, but thought again how strange it is that Elizabeth, Margaret, and their parents seemed to have such an idyllic home life, and when she became Queen, Elizabeth’s own family didn’t seem to have nearly as good an experience. Margaret’s adult life, too, was tumultuous.
Of her own family, Alathea writes: “It has been my fate never to know an atmosphere of love among my own family. My father, mother and I have all been equally unlucky in our mothers, none of us three, or Elizabeth Anne (her younger sister), has ever known a mother’s love. God help me to profit from this bitter knowledge and not let my own children suffer from it.”
Many times, reading these diaries, I would feel like I was a kindred spirit with Alathea. I am wondering whether I really am, or whether these similar feelings are common to many girls in their teenage years. For instance, she writes about being invited to comedy movies and not finding them that funny being mystified at others “shrieking with laughter at really stupid things which completely fail to amuse me.” I have felt this way many times in life. Or, “I tried by the intensity of my thoughts to make him feel my presence and when we both sat back and our shoulders almost touched an unbearable agony filled my soul, and amid all this raucous laughter I was poignantly aware of the sadness of the world.” Ha — I could totally have written that as a teen. Or, “Surely, after such a brilliant girlhood, I could not be condemned to a life of obscurity?” Ha ha, again, I thought that many times, and yet my adult life has been fairly unremarkable — as, sadly, was Alathea’s. She always dreamed of making a wonderful love-match with a dashing man, but unfortunately, the afterword tells us that she married a “second son” around age 30, never had the children she so often writes about wanting, and had a challenging marriage due to her husband being a “tricky man,” but she stuck the marriage out. It made me sad to read all her youthful dreams and hopes, knowing that they wouldn’t be fulfilled. Many times I think it’s probably best that we don’t know the future.
We learn a lot about the young princesses Elizabeth and Margaret, including hearing about Elizabeth first becoming enchanted with Philip, whom she was later to marry, when she was just 14. Of Elizabeth, she writes: “She doesn’t know what a real friend is, as she never talks confidentially to one and she’s the most ungossipy person I know. Placid and unemotional, she never desires what doesn’t come her way; always happy in her own family, she never needs the companionship of outsiders; she never suffers, therefore she never strongly desires. If only she could be drawn out of her shell, she who has so much at her feet, who can be so gay and amusing. Margaret is far and away more the type I would like for the future queen — she has that frivolity and irresponsibility that Lilibet lacks, though one couldn’t call either of them dull.” Interesting.
“I, in my generation, am privileged to have partaken of that existence, in those days before the old order in England, though fast crumbling, had not completely fallen!” How many of us have felt that way, about growing up when we did, compared to our world today? It’s interesting to see that people were speaking the same way about the world in the 1940s.
I really, really enjoyed reading Alathea’s diaries and am grateful to Isabella Naylor-Leyland for compiling them for the public to read.
The diaries are interesting in themselves, for a look at what an English young woman’s life was like during WWII. Alathea makes much of hairstyles, what she and others wear, etc. She mentions bombings, FDR’s death, an assassination attempt on Hitler, etc.
But what makes Alathea’s diaries worthy of publishing is no doubt the fact that she was 2 years older than then-princess Elizabeth, and she was a frequent friend to the princesses, staying with them, taking classes with them, going to parties with them, etc.
I’m sure Alathea never dreamed these diaries would be made public, and so she is quite honest in her assessments of various things and people. Of young Princess Elizabeth: “How different she was from what Margaret is now — so much more serious and grown-up and yet not nearly so sweet and attractive.”
Alathea writes of her excitement whenever she is invited to Windsor to play with the princesses or take an art or dance class with them. “I feel I am one of the most fortunate people in the world.” She writes about the King and Queen coming into the bedroom to tell the girls goodnight, and she loves this so much. Alathea had a difficult home situation. Her parents lived apart, with her critical mother living away most of the time. Alathea was left with her largely quiet father and her grandfather — not the wonderful home life she observed among the royal family. I have thought this before, but thought again how strange it is that Elizabeth, Margaret, and their parents seemed to have such an idyllic home life, and when she became Queen, Elizabeth’s own family didn’t seem to have nearly as good an experience. Margaret’s adult life, too, was tumultuous.
Of her own family, Alathea writes: “It has been my fate never to know an atmosphere of love among my own family. My father, mother and I have all been equally unlucky in our mothers, none of us three, or Elizabeth Anne (her younger sister), has ever known a mother’s love. God help me to profit from this bitter knowledge and not let my own children suffer from it.”
Many times, reading these diaries, I would feel like I was a kindred spirit with Alathea. I am wondering whether I really am, or whether these similar feelings are common to many girls in their teenage years. For instance, she writes about being invited to comedy movies and not finding them that funny being mystified at others “shrieking with laughter at really stupid things which completely fail to amuse me.” I have felt this way many times in life. Or, “I tried by the intensity of my thoughts to make him feel my presence and when we both sat back and our shoulders almost touched an unbearable agony filled my soul, and amid all this raucous laughter I was poignantly aware of the sadness of the world.” Ha — I could totally have written that as a teen. Or, “Surely, after such a brilliant girlhood, I could not be condemned to a life of obscurity?” Ha ha, again, I thought that many times, and yet my adult life has been fairly unremarkable — as, sadly, was Alathea’s. She always dreamed of making a wonderful love-match with a dashing man, but unfortunately, the afterword tells us that she married a “second son” around age 30, never had the children she so often writes about wanting, and had a challenging marriage due to her husband being a “tricky man,” but she stuck the marriage out. It made me sad to read all her youthful dreams and hopes, knowing that they wouldn’t be fulfilled. Many times I think it’s probably best that we don’t know the future.
We learn a lot about the young princesses Elizabeth and Margaret, including hearing about Elizabeth first becoming enchanted with Philip, whom she was later to marry, when she was just 14. Of Elizabeth, she writes: “She doesn’t know what a real friend is, as she never talks confidentially to one and she’s the most ungossipy person I know. Placid and unemotional, she never desires what doesn’t come her way; always happy in her own family, she never needs the companionship of outsiders; she never suffers, therefore she never strongly desires. If only she could be drawn out of her shell, she who has so much at her feet, who can be so gay and amusing. Margaret is far and away more the type I would like for the future queen — she has that frivolity and irresponsibility that Lilibet lacks, though one couldn’t call either of them dull.” Interesting.
“I, in my generation, am privileged to have partaken of that existence, in those days before the old order in England, though fast crumbling, had not completely fallen!” How many of us have felt that way, about growing up when we did, compared to our world today? It’s interesting to see that people were speaking the same way about the world in the 1940s.
I really, really enjoyed reading Alathea’s diaries and am grateful to Isabella Naylor-Leyland for compiling them for the public to read.
May 11, 2021
I did enjoy this but reading diaries can be boring. You need to be a fan of the Princesses to read this. During WWII Alathea was sent to live with her grandfather at Cumberland Lodge, while the Princesses were sent to Windsor Castle. She became a companion of theirs and just adored the whole Royal Family. Alathea had a horrible family so she was glad to get to be apart of the Royal Family and she knew just how special she was. She also knew her time with them would be short. She had hoped to be made a lady in waiting but sadly for her that never happened. She wrote in her diary every day for over 60 years! She did want them published one day and I think this was a good way to do that. I laughed several times because I am reading a teenager's diary. She thought very well of herself and did not understand why others did not find her so charming. She always described what the Princesses were wearing which I thought to be so funny. She was very obsessed with fashion. She was also very sad because while she loved the Royal family, she also knew she was an outsider and not really part of their family.
March 31, 2021
I received an advance reading copy of this book directly from the publisher as well as NetGalley.com in return for a fair review. As a teenager, Alathea Fitzalan kept a detailed diary. She was sent to live with her grandfather, Lord Fitzalan, and aunt at Cumberland Lodge located in Windsor Park during World War II. Alathea's father visited on weekends and her mother was more absent than present. When she did make an appearance, it was usually to criticize her sensitive daughter. This left a lonely teenager craving affection. She found that love and sense of belonging in a most unusual place--Windsor Castle, which was just a bike ride away. Alathea befriended the two young princesses, Elizabeth and Margaret. She adored the Queen who was always kind to her and who became a mother figure to her. She detailed the lives of the three girls who were teenagers isolated by war. Alathea writes about bombing raids and hiding in the basement. She also writes about shortages and worries that life will never get back to normal. She even noted the untimely death of her favorite actor, Leslie Howard, but she also talks about her friendship with Elizabeth and Margaret. For most of us, it's hard to imagine the Queen as a youngster, but the giggles and secrets the girls shared are refreshing. I especially liked the story where the three of them walked to a bridge and leaned over the side to see if they could spit on some leaves that were floating below. Elizabeth even confided that she had a crush on a certain handsome prince from Greece. While some of Alathea's observations are childish, we have to remember that she was a child living in extraordinary circumstances. This is a great book for anyone interested in the Royal Family or a fan of The Crown. Alathea's diary entries are filled with interesting anecdotes and fascinating people who crossed her path. It's a great glimpse into history from the viewpoint of a young woman who wanted nothing more than to be a part of a family--royal or otherwise. Nicely done.
October 15, 2021
I was quite disappointed in these diaries. There was some insight into life in the war years but Alathea wrote mostly about her clothes and her day to day life. While that was totally expected as when the diaries began she was 17. I thought as she got older the entries would become more informative and shared more concern about the war. Mostly, she seemed annoyed that she had to work as a VAD- (volunteer aid detachment, providing military care to the military) and that her social life was impacted. She did not provide any detail about her work except for the hours and how tiring it was.
She interacted a great deal with the Royal family and her life was quite enriched with art and dancing lessons in Windsor castle. She was always in awe of the King and Queen in their genuine care and concern for everyone but was quite catty about a Princess l Margaret and more so about Elizabeth. She criticized their clothes as they often wore the same clothes over and over and thought that they should have new clothes. She did not see how importantly the Royal family understood their privilege in life and ensured that they lived a more humble life in such difficult times.
The Royal family lived quite simply in those years with the princesses maintaining their studies and had instructors come to Windsor for art and dancing lessons. They invited the children of the staff and neighbours to join them in these classes. They spent many hours walking around Windsor, rowing boats Ion the water, having picnics and of course, visiting the ponies. Alathea often complained that the princesses spent so much time with their family and were quite content doing so. Her family was quite fragmented and she yearned for that kind of love. Her jealousy of close family and social status came through often in her writing but she did not seem to mature and see that her own life was more privileged than most.
She interacted a great deal with the Royal family and her life was quite enriched with art and dancing lessons in Windsor castle. She was always in awe of the King and Queen in their genuine care and concern for everyone but was quite catty about a Princess l Margaret and more so about Elizabeth. She criticized their clothes as they often wore the same clothes over and over and thought that they should have new clothes. She did not see how importantly the Royal family understood their privilege in life and ensured that they lived a more humble life in such difficult times.
The Royal family lived quite simply in those years with the princesses maintaining their studies and had instructors come to Windsor for art and dancing lessons. They invited the children of the staff and neighbours to join them in these classes. They spent many hours walking around Windsor, rowing boats Ion the water, having picnics and of course, visiting the ponies. Alathea often complained that the princesses spent so much time with their family and were quite content doing so. Her family was quite fragmented and she yearned for that kind of love. Her jealousy of close family and social status came through often in her writing but she did not seem to mature and see that her own life was more privileged than most.
February 5, 2021
Alathea Fitzalan-Howard, daughter of Viscount Fitzalan and Joyce Langdale, spent the war years at Cumberland Lodge, Windsor, where she formed a close friendship with the two young princesses Elizabeth and Margaret. Alathea was an unhappy young girl, a girl who was supposed to be a boy, and she was caught in the middle of her estranged parents cold war. To deal with her unhappiness, she kept a diary, in whose pages she confided her hopes and dreams plus all the details of her friendship with the princesses.
The diary therefore provides an insider's viewpoint on the domestic life of the royal family and what a happy, and very self-contained, unit they were. Alathea both loved and idolised Lilibet (the nickname of Princess Elizabeth) and longed for them to be closer. The diary sets out what an essentially decent and dutiful person the princess was, and remains as queen, but also highlights what a self-reliant and emotionally aloof person she also was. Happy in her own company, and with her close family and pets, the princess didn't really need other people and Alathea, slowly and sadly, comes to terms with this reality through the medium of her diary.
'The Windsor Diaries' is a fascinating record of a specific time period, 1940-45, and will be of great interest to all royal fans. The princesses play a big part in the diary but so does Alathea's family and, of course, the young woman herself whom the reader comes to know very well. Alathea desperately wanted to fall in love with a handsome man and to serve Princess Elizabeth as a lady in waiting. Those were her twin dreams and a good portion of the diary is taken up with them. I won't spoil the outcome by saying any more. Four stars.
The diary therefore provides an insider's viewpoint on the domestic life of the royal family and what a happy, and very self-contained, unit they were. Alathea both loved and idolised Lilibet (the nickname of Princess Elizabeth) and longed for them to be closer. The diary sets out what an essentially decent and dutiful person the princess was, and remains as queen, but also highlights what a self-reliant and emotionally aloof person she also was. Happy in her own company, and with her close family and pets, the princess didn't really need other people and Alathea, slowly and sadly, comes to terms with this reality through the medium of her diary.
'The Windsor Diaries' is a fascinating record of a specific time period, 1940-45, and will be of great interest to all royal fans. The princesses play a big part in the diary but so does Alathea's family and, of course, the young woman herself whom the reader comes to know very well. Alathea desperately wanted to fall in love with a handsome man and to serve Princess Elizabeth as a lady in waiting. Those were her twin dreams and a good portion of the diary is taken up with them. I won't spoil the outcome by saying any more. Four stars.
September 28, 2021
2021 bk 296. I've read through the reviews first, a thing I rarely do, because I wanted to see if anyone else had picked up on the fact that Alathea Howard was a cutter. This girl needed help. I think the Queen Mother picked up on this and probably continued keeping Alathea in the social circle to help her the best she could - but most likely advised against her being a lady-in-waiting. The book in itself is enchanting as it depicts how sheltered the upper echelon kept their daughters. The diarist was, as most teens are, egocentric. She talks of PE taking art and music classes, but deplores her lack of interest in culture. In doing so she was mirroring her mother's type of criticism. It was interesting seeing that she didn't like the housekeeping duties (most reviewers commented on this), but she did stick it out until she was released from that duty. From there she worked at the Red Cross. In her narrow world view, I think she regarded PE war duties as public relations bids. I don't think she ever realized the PE's war duties were public relations in nature and in learning a role that she was bound to for the rest of her life.
December 26, 2020
Perfect for fans of 'The Crown,’ this is the kind of book you want to curl up with next to a roaring fire or on your next vacation. A fascinating, eyewitness account of the British Royal Family’s private life against the backdrop of the Second World War, ’The Windsor Diaries’ shows the King, the Queen, and the two princesses through the eyes of a girl who was invited into their home during Britain’s darkest hour. I could not put it down.
July 20, 2021
I love reading diaries but man this was boring and frustrating. This overdramatic individual cries when people say her dress didnt look good. My gosh
June 9, 2021
Ce livre m’a intrigué dès que j’ai vu qu’il était basé sur les journaux intimes d’une amie d’enfance d’Elizabeth II mais surtout couvrant toute la vie d’Alathea avec une franchise et une sincérité qui en fait un témoignage rare et précieux. La vie d’Alathea sera faite de joies et de déceptions où sa seule bulle dorée sera ses moments passés avec les Windsor malgré les horreurs de la Seconde Guerre mondiale. Entre mondanités, amitiés et pertes d’êtres chers, on suit le quotidien d’une adolescente lucide sur sa vie en devenir et qui profite des moments heureux avant que ceux-ci ne soient plus qu’un lointain souvenir. Comment Alathea a été témoin grâce à son intimité avec la famille royale du futur destin de celle qui deviendra la reine d’Angleterre.
Préface d’Isabelle Neylor-Layland.
A 16 ans, Alathea Fitzalan est envoyée chez son grand-père et sa tante à Cumberland Lodge au sein du parc de la résidence de la famille royale. Une vie austère pour une jeune fille si ce n’est ses visites chez les Windsor.
Dans le journal intime d’Alathea, 1940-1945 dévoile avec sincérité, ses aspirations, ses rêves inaccessibles, ses douleurs et humiliations, les injustices de cette époque envers les femmes…
Une enfance où elle ressentira la déception de n’être pas un garçon, de ne pas avoir l’amour de sa mère qui n’aime pas les enfants et qui lui reproche tant de choses…
L’importance de ce témoignage réside sur ses liens avec Elizabeth, la future reine d’Angleterre. Une amitié sincère entre Alathea et celle qu’elle surnomma Lilibet malgré leurs différences de rang et d’avenir.
Passionnée par les vêtements et la mode, Alathea décrit avec minutie et détails les apparitions des princesses. Une jeunesse dorée et insouciante si ce n’était les prémices de la Seconde Guerre mondiale mais où Alathea reconnaît que sans celle-ci, elle n’aurait jamais pu côtoyer la famille royale. Partie intégrante des Windsor, Alathea est de toutes leurs escapades et passe même certains week-end avec eux. Lucide sur ces instants où elle mène une vie privilégiée et goûte à une vie de famille si différente de la sienne.
Témoin rare des premiers émois de la future reine avec Philip de Grèce, Alathea pressent qu’il deviendra son mari. Son journal est aussi la rencontre de personnalités importantes comme le roi Georges VI, celle qu’on surnomma la Queen Mum ou le futur père de Lady Di. Jusqu’à Crawfie, la nurse des princesse qui utilisera sa position pour écrire un best-seller dévoilant l’enfance des princesses mais aussi les intrigues autour de Wallis Simpson. Une trahison que ne pardonnera jamais la famille royale et qui sera le début d’une longue série des collaborateurs avides de leur quart d’heure de gloire.
Morte en 2001, Alathea a laissé 64 volumes allant de 1939 à 2001 de son journal intime, elle savait l’importance de ses écrits et voulait que ceux-ci soient lus et reconnus comme le témoignage d’une époque révolue. On peut diviser ses journaux en trois parties : son enfance, son mariage et son veuvage.
Un témoignage captivant et fascinant où s’entremêlent la jeunesse d’Alathea et celles des princesses royales sur fond de Seconde Guerre mondiale !
Préface d’Isabelle Neylor-Layland.
A 16 ans, Alathea Fitzalan est envoyée chez son grand-père et sa tante à Cumberland Lodge au sein du parc de la résidence de la famille royale. Une vie austère pour une jeune fille si ce n’est ses visites chez les Windsor.
Dans le journal intime d’Alathea, 1940-1945 dévoile avec sincérité, ses aspirations, ses rêves inaccessibles, ses douleurs et humiliations, les injustices de cette époque envers les femmes…
Une enfance où elle ressentira la déception de n’être pas un garçon, de ne pas avoir l’amour de sa mère qui n’aime pas les enfants et qui lui reproche tant de choses…
L’importance de ce témoignage réside sur ses liens avec Elizabeth, la future reine d’Angleterre. Une amitié sincère entre Alathea et celle qu’elle surnomma Lilibet malgré leurs différences de rang et d’avenir.
Passionnée par les vêtements et la mode, Alathea décrit avec minutie et détails les apparitions des princesses. Une jeunesse dorée et insouciante si ce n’était les prémices de la Seconde Guerre mondiale mais où Alathea reconnaît que sans celle-ci, elle n’aurait jamais pu côtoyer la famille royale. Partie intégrante des Windsor, Alathea est de toutes leurs escapades et passe même certains week-end avec eux. Lucide sur ces instants où elle mène une vie privilégiée et goûte à une vie de famille si différente de la sienne.
Témoin rare des premiers émois de la future reine avec Philip de Grèce, Alathea pressent qu’il deviendra son mari. Son journal est aussi la rencontre de personnalités importantes comme le roi Georges VI, celle qu’on surnomma la Queen Mum ou le futur père de Lady Di. Jusqu’à Crawfie, la nurse des princesse qui utilisera sa position pour écrire un best-seller dévoilant l’enfance des princesses mais aussi les intrigues autour de Wallis Simpson. Une trahison que ne pardonnera jamais la famille royale et qui sera le début d’une longue série des collaborateurs avides de leur quart d’heure de gloire.
Morte en 2001, Alathea a laissé 64 volumes allant de 1939 à 2001 de son journal intime, elle savait l’importance de ses écrits et voulait que ceux-ci soient lus et reconnus comme le témoignage d’une époque révolue. On peut diviser ses journaux en trois parties : son enfance, son mariage et son veuvage.
Un témoignage captivant et fascinant où s’entremêlent la jeunesse d’Alathea et celles des princesses royales sur fond de Seconde Guerre mondiale !
March 29, 2021
Thank you to NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
The Windsor Diaries was exactly what I was expecting, and it was fascinating. Alathea Fitzalan Howard was a good friend of the princesses during the war years, but didn't spend all of her time with them- I feel like I learned a quite a bit about both the royals' lives during the war, but also life in general. I was also a little shocked (but shouldn't have been) at how many people who would go on to play crucial roles in the government or society were casually mentioned. The Windsor Diaries is a good reminder of just how connected the aristocracy and upper classes were (and still are) in Britain.
Because it is a transcribed diary, it can be choppy reading but I had expected that. It may not be the smoothest reading experience, but it does give you a much better idea of how Alathea was feeling when writing. She was rather blunt when writing, which can be a bit funny- if she didn't like what the princesses were wearing, she did not hide it in her diary haha. I found it touching just how important the princesses and their life events were to her. Even if there was nothing else in the diary entry, she noted their birthday. It was heartbreaking to see how badly she wanted to be a lady-in-waiting to Elizabeth, and although her diary entries are brief, it was still difficult to read.
All in all, fascinating and a perfect read for royal history buffs!
The Windsor Diaries was exactly what I was expecting, and it was fascinating. Alathea Fitzalan Howard was a good friend of the princesses during the war years, but didn't spend all of her time with them- I feel like I learned a quite a bit about both the royals' lives during the war, but also life in general. I was also a little shocked (but shouldn't have been) at how many people who would go on to play crucial roles in the government or society were casually mentioned. The Windsor Diaries is a good reminder of just how connected the aristocracy and upper classes were (and still are) in Britain.
Because it is a transcribed diary, it can be choppy reading but I had expected that. It may not be the smoothest reading experience, but it does give you a much better idea of how Alathea was feeling when writing. She was rather blunt when writing, which can be a bit funny- if she didn't like what the princesses were wearing, she did not hide it in her diary haha. I found it touching just how important the princesses and their life events were to her. Even if there was nothing else in the diary entry, she noted their birthday. It was heartbreaking to see how badly she wanted to be a lady-in-waiting to Elizabeth, and although her diary entries are brief, it was still difficult to read.
All in all, fascinating and a perfect read for royal history buffs!
May 6, 2021
While it was a page-turner of a book, it was also very tragic. I expected some light-hearted read of romps through the private gardens at Windsor Castle and yes, there was that, but the diarist was a truly sad person who seemed obsessed with the Royal Family and especially with the current Queen's parents. Understandably, Alathea had a non-existent family life because of her parents' separation but if you read it, you'll understand immediately that she also had mental health issues. On the one hand she claimed to love and admire the Queen, but she insulted her clothing choices, groom choice, painting talent, etc. Even the fact that the Queen served in some capacity during WWII. Don't read it, Your Majesty, just put the book down!
January 15, 2025
Quite a social history. Fascinating in so many levels:
As the diary of a late teen, entering adulthood, over 80 years ago. The usual angst, dreams, resentments that teens have now. Who knew that self-harm and cutting was this old. She reports cutting herself twice in response to feeling sad and with no control over her life, and covers it up: a cat or long sleeves.
As a record of the changes wrought by the WWII, even if it appears that war has not the impact you’d expect, irrespective of her forced labour in a field she’d never have done otherwise.
As a record of the lives of Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret during the war.
As the diary of a late teen, entering adulthood, over 80 years ago. The usual angst, dreams, resentments that teens have now. Who knew that self-harm and cutting was this old. She reports cutting herself twice in response to feeling sad and with no control over her life, and covers it up: a cat or long sleeves.
As a record of the changes wrought by the WWII, even if it appears that war has not the impact you’d expect, irrespective of her forced labour in a field she’d never have done otherwise.
As a record of the lives of Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret during the war.
April 27, 2021
The Windsor Diaries: My Childhood with the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret is the never before published diaries of Alathea Fitzalan Howard who kept a diary her whole life and during WWII she was close friends with Princess Elizabeth & Margaret.
This was an interesting read, though because of the diary format it was funny to read the inconsequental thoughts of a teenage girl. I do with the footnotes would have been on the same page to make it easier to read and understand them as you were reading the diary.
This was an interesting read, though because of the diary format it was funny to read the inconsequental thoughts of a teenage girl. I do with the footnotes would have been on the same page to make it easier to read and understand them as you were reading the diary.
June 13, 2021
Enjoyable easy read. Interesting to read how the English peerage were living during the war years through the eyes of a teenage girl living with her elderly grandfather and great aunt. Absent parents and an unkind mother popping up from time to time. Not an enviable life.
Surprising that parties often ended at 3am or 4am, not too different from parties of a similar demographic these days. Games like charades involved and maybe more champagne.
Surprising that parties often ended at 3am or 4am, not too different from parties of a similar demographic these days. Games like charades involved and maybe more champagne.
July 2, 2021
Add this to your list if you like diary/journal style books OR if you are curious about the royal family. Filled with innocent moments, wartime memories, humor... I really enjoyed this.
"The princesses were rather cross too, because Lilibet played the piano badly and the curtain fell on Margaret's head."
"The princesses were rather cross too, because Lilibet played the piano badly and the curtain fell on Margaret's head."
May 26, 2021
I very much enjoyed listening to the audiobook of her diary entries. She was a good writer and I found her thoughts both entertaining and sometimes sad. There were definitely some things I related to. Sad that life didn't turn out the way she wanted but that happens in life, its not a fairytale.
April 18, 2021
Interesting for the history.
April 12, 2021
I was really looking forward to reading this book - a bit of an insiders story about the wartime life at Windsor castle by someone who was a contemporary/playmate of Princesses Elizabeth & Margaret ... unfortunately I was very disappointed. I am sure Alethea was a lovely young lady but her diaries just highlight the fact that she was very spoilt. “I hate even putting my fingers into dirty water” (Washington up), “I should hate to tidy my room and make my bed etc I’m not mad either to look after myself”. She seemed obsessed by clothes and it feels like every other sentence was about what she/the princesses were wearing “I changed into my pale green and white frock”, “The princesses had the same awful blue and pink shantung dresses on”,
Alethea had a very old-fashioned attitude and seems fixated on what is appropriate for a princess, constantly says thing like “it’s not very becoming” or “I think the Queen is wrong to allow it” or “I really cannot understand them allowing her to do it” - yet her obsession with the royal family had her running at every call and desperately hanging on to everything they were doing. As time moved on she became desperate to be appointed Lady-in-Waiting but this did not happen.
Overall, I was very disappointed but some people may enjoy this.
Disclosure: I received an advance reader copy of this book free via NetGalley. Whilst thanks go to the publisher for the opportunity to read it, all opinions are my own.
#TheWindsorDiaries #NetGalley
Alethea had a very old-fashioned attitude and seems fixated on what is appropriate for a princess, constantly says thing like “it’s not very becoming” or “I think the Queen is wrong to allow it” or “I really cannot understand them allowing her to do it” - yet her obsession with the royal family had her running at every call and desperately hanging on to everything they were doing. As time moved on she became desperate to be appointed Lady-in-Waiting but this did not happen.
Overall, I was very disappointed but some people may enjoy this.
Disclosure: I received an advance reader copy of this book free via NetGalley. Whilst thanks go to the publisher for the opportunity to read it, all opinions are my own.
#TheWindsorDiaries #NetGalley
December 8, 2021
I'm not sure what I expected when reading a 15 year old girl's diary, so I shouldn't be surprised when most of what Alathea wrote about was her longing to find a husband and her commentary on the princesses' dull clothes. I wouldn't call this a historical piece on the lives of the princesses during WWII.
Perhaps most fascinating to me was the historical accounts of the grand balls and feasts that were still held during WWII, even under strict rationing, where Alathea would be out with the princesses until 3, 4, 5 o'clock in the morning. In my mind, that era ended after WWI (maybe too much Downton influence here), but I did enjoy these particular chronicles of Alathea's.
Perhaps most fascinating to me was the historical accounts of the grand balls and feasts that were still held during WWII, even under strict rationing, where Alathea would be out with the princesses until 3, 4, 5 o'clock in the morning. In my mind, that era ended after WWI (maybe too much Downton influence here), but I did enjoy these particular chronicles of Alathea's.
May 5, 2021
There is absolutely nothing wrong with this book. It’s just not for me. I am fascinated by The Royal Family — and have only grown more intrigued by them and their histories over the past year or so. I was looking forward to reading this book. The book is perfectly fine for any reader. It just never really sucked me in like I was hoping for. The book is entirely diary entries — So, it’s written in that form which is a nice format. It makes sense for the author of the diary to use nicknames as she is writing — After all, it’s her diary and it’s truly intended for her to understand. But, as an outsider and someone who doesn’t know an immense history of The Royal’s, it was hard to follow at times. Again, that’s no fault of the author by any means though because it’s her diary and it’s how she chose to dialogue. The plethora of footnotes were meaningful and explained a lot. Growing up as the author did and her association with The Royal Family was definitely a mind blowing childhood and adolescence. Her experiences are conveyed well. I’ll pick this one up again once I get caught up on The Crown (I have only seen Seasons 1-3 so far) and have more background about The Royal’s.
October 20, 2020
A candid, entertaining and fly on the wall account of life for the young aristocracy and royal children during the Second World War.
A well kept diary that contained the daily activities, family joys and grievances and a snippet into social and religious standings within the class.
Alathea was a character and her diary a personal forum to record her honest thoughts.
The connection and relationship she had with the royal family in particular the young princesses was fascinating.
Their shared experiences through the war a valuable first hand account and confirmation that’s it affect widespread.
To keep a diary is a discipline and have it shared with the world is testimony to its relevance.
The childlike innocence, the childlike remarks and most importantly the observations taken in make this a memorable read.
In places this made laugh as innocent comments about the young Princess Elizabeth and her clothing choices and her demure personality.
Comments that I imagine would even make the Queen laugh.
I would love to read more entries in the later years of this truly interesting lady.
Her legacy lives on.
November 13, 2022
This is a lovely collection from the diary entries of Alathea Fitzalan-Hughes. It covers the years of WW2, which she spent in a very imposing property called Cumberland Lodge, in Windsor Great Park.
Although slightly older than the then Princess Elizabeth, they spent quite a bit of time together. Alathea’s entries can sometimes be very cutting in their description of the future Queen and others too. Alathea preferred the more extrovert personality of Princess Margaret.
We get insight into the horror of the war years and the many deprivations that people suffered. Alathea, particularly hated the clothing coupons as her mother was a very well dressed socialite so would have been used to the very best.
Alathea definitely had a difficult upbringing and she never secured the good match that her mother hoped for and in some ways she had a sad life. We are told of this at the end, in a short summary of her life.
This details a way of life that is long gone, but I love the spark of her personality and I’m sure she would have been a fabulous lady to know.
Trigger warning. Please be aware that there are several references to self-harming contained in the entries.
Although slightly older than the then Princess Elizabeth, they spent quite a bit of time together. Alathea’s entries can sometimes be very cutting in their description of the future Queen and others too. Alathea preferred the more extrovert personality of Princess Margaret.
We get insight into the horror of the war years and the many deprivations that people suffered. Alathea, particularly hated the clothing coupons as her mother was a very well dressed socialite so would have been used to the very best.
Alathea definitely had a difficult upbringing and she never secured the good match that her mother hoped for and in some ways she had a sad life. We are told of this at the end, in a short summary of her life.
This details a way of life that is long gone, but I love the spark of her personality and I’m sure she would have been a fabulous lady to know.
Trigger warning. Please be aware that there are several references to self-harming contained in the entries.
April 2, 2021
A beautiful diary read, I really felt part of what was going on.
Alathea's life as a teenager growing up during WW2 is fascinating, the way her friendships evolved during wartime, how her life changed and her difficult relationship with her mother (who is critical and undermining) alongside her younger sister and importantly the King, Queen and young princesses is absorbing and interesting.
Alathea's affection for Elizabeth and Margaret, and their parents is warm and genuine, and her heartfelt pain over her dream of becoming a lady in waiting is heartwrenching, as is her unrequited love for Hugh.
I really enjoyed this book, and learned a lot about how it felt to live during that time, even though she lived in privilege, the only small issue I had with ecopy was having to lose my place whilst searching the appendix at the end for Information on names, initials etc, but this would not be any issue for a paper copy.
Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the advance copy, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Alathea's life as a teenager growing up during WW2 is fascinating, the way her friendships evolved during wartime, how her life changed and her difficult relationship with her mother (who is critical and undermining) alongside her younger sister and importantly the King, Queen and young princesses is absorbing and interesting.
Alathea's affection for Elizabeth and Margaret, and their parents is warm and genuine, and her heartfelt pain over her dream of becoming a lady in waiting is heartwrenching, as is her unrequited love for Hugh.
I really enjoyed this book, and learned a lot about how it felt to live during that time, even though she lived in privilege, the only small issue I had with ecopy was having to lose my place whilst searching the appendix at the end for Information on names, initials etc, but this would not be any issue for a paper copy.
Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the advance copy, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
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