The Duke had voiced similar love and affection the previous day during a wedding anniversary luncheon hosted by the City of London. After paying an unexpectedly tender tribute to their children, he turned to the Queen herself: ' I think the main lesson that we have learned is that tolerance is the one essential ingredient of any happy marriage. You can take it from me that the Queen has the quality of tolerance in abundance."

Simon Sebag Montefiore Robert Hardman has written a truly exceptional biography of an equally exceptional monarch, rich in new material, wit and original thought. With intimate and unrivalled access to those who really know the story. This is a new biography of the Queen and her role published for the Platinum Jubilee earlier this year, taking her life and reign up until the beginning of 2022 (so some of the references to record-breaking and transition are now redundant). It is very comprehensive, covering her personal life, constitutional issues, domestic issues, politics, foreign policy, everything basically. It is very readable though, and never flags or bores at any point. While I’m not interested in the celebrity of monarchy, I am interested in the governance/ geopolitical precedent of the English system. Most of my reading of the Royal Family has taken place in context of history and biography. I also watch a few documentaries. Though I write more of my musings about the ethics of the system in my review, the only other book I have also read/ reviewed is the inferior: On 6th February this year Her Majesty The Queen became the first British Monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee, marking 70 years of service to the people of the United Kingdom, the Realms and the Commonwealth.Hardman calls the first decade of Elizabeth’s era the “unfinished reign” of George VI, when the old guard of the previous Household remained in charge. By the late 1960s, the old men had gone. The Queen was firmly installed, and she embarked on a programme of modernisation.

This is one of the best biographies I have ever read and after 25 hours of spending time in the Queen’s world, I was truly sad to reach the end. The author did a magnificent job of covering her reign and her character. The book was wonderfully paced with multiple interviews and primary sources that painted a full and clear picture for me. It was also a great reminder of how little the media gets right and how much is always going on behind the scenes. The care and detail to get things right almost always gets lost in our 24-7 news cycle. I ended the book with a deep appreciation for a woman who lived steadfastly and faithfully to her principles and left a beautiful legacy for us to emulate. This is as much a biography of the last 70 years as of the Queen herself, published only months before her death. It is rich in fascinating insights and revealing details from interviews with key players - from prime ministers and presidents to members of the royal staff, and paints a positive but believable picture of a committed monarch performing the delicate balancing act of maintaining the status quo whilst moving with the times. Hardman distils Elizabeth's complex life in to a must-read study of dynastic survival and renewal. It is a portrait of a world leader who remains as intriguing today as the day she came to the Throne at age twenty-five. Robert has written this book in the best possible way without showing any bias, including all the controversies that the Queen had to face. Diana's funeral and controversies related to Prince Andrew and Prince Harry-Meghan Markle are all discussed in detail here.

On February 6th, 2022 ,she marks 70 years on the Throne. Robert Hardman, the acclaimed and respected author of Her Majesty and Queen of the World has already examined the Queen as a modern monarch and her role as a stateswoman abroad. Now, he wraps up the full story of one of the undisputed greats in a thousand years of monarchy. Die Zitate von verschiedenen Personen, die die Queen trafen und kannten Verleihen dem Buch nochmal mehr Authentizität. The four days of celebrations will include public events and community activities, as well as national moments of reflection on The Queen’s 70 years of service.” ( https://www.royal.uk/platinum-jubilee..., Retrieved 8/6/2022)

I need to start this review by saying that I have read numerous books about Queen Elizabeth, as well as about many other members of the English royal family. As an American, I have always enjoyed reading about Great Britain, its people and customs. This includes lots of books that take place there.This is a beautifully crafted, deeply informed, and rounded portrait of the gold standard monarch and the age to which she has given her name. Robert Hardman’s Queen of Our Times has depth feel and insight in abundance.” Queen Elizabeth II was one of the main reasons for the recent changing relations between the UK and Ireland. Her historic visit to Ireland and her Gaelic (Irish) opening line in her speech all played a major role in it. Queen Of Our Times, read by the author, is the definitive biography of Queen Elizabeth II by one of Britain’s leading royal authorities, Robert Hardman. This commemorative edition includes an epilogue reflecting upon Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee, her passing and her funeral. All of these describe Her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned through more seismic social change than any monarch since 1066 (Charles I included). From the Abdication to the Sussexes, she has witnessed family crises on a scale not seen since the days of George III. Elizabeth: The Unseen Queen tells the story of the Queen's life through BBC exclusive access to never-before-seen home videos and footage of Elizabeth’s private moments, making it the most complete look at her life in existence to date.

Elizabeth II. wurde nicht als Thronfolgerin geboren. Doch seit ihrer Krönung 1952 hat sie sich als kluge und entschlossene Persönlichkeit erwiesen und ihr Volk souverän durch teils massive Veränderungen geführt. Sie sah sich mit Verfassungskrisen konfrontiert, erhielt Morddrohungen, sah 14 Premierminister kommen und gehen, bezauberte Staatsoberhäupter aus aller Welt, wurde von den Medien gefeiert und kritisiert und lebte ein Leben in der Öffentlichkeit. This is a delightful book that follows Queen Elizabeth from her birth to today. We see so much about the family here than in other books I have read. While the book is rather long, it is also filled with so many events I’ve not read about before so I enjoyed every bit of it. The Queen emerges as remarkably robust, even today. One aide remarked there was no danger of her going to pieces over Philip’s death. “She is much stronger than that.” The head of state who appeared on film with James Bond at the 2012 Olympics is still able to adapt to change, as shown by her new-found enthusiasm for Zoom. Hardman’s exhaustive and endlessly enthusiastic biography paints a vivid picture of a phenomenal sovereign. This article from Elite Daily contains a nice list of documentaries if you would like more in that genre...With fascinating revelations from those who knew her best and special access to unseen royal papers granted by Elizabeth II herself, author and royal expert Robert Hardman explores the full, astonishing life of our longest reigning monarch in this authoritative yet intimate biography. Perhaps the Duke of Windsor (formerly King Edward VIII) and Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, have strengthened the monarchy by leaving. They have demonstrated that your fate is not completely sealed by birth into the State system because, whether already King or merely in the line of succession, you can step away from public service to the monarchy. Likewise, perhaps the expulsion of Prince Andrew for his long-documented abuses of status indicates the family can be self-monitoring to maintain their beneficent role? Meanwhile, the success of the Queen, her husband Prince Philip, her daughter Princess Anne and son Prince Edward (with his wife Sophie), and Prince William (and his wife, Katherine) highlight that the role can be fulfilled well.