Queen Elizabeth arriving in the UK from Kenya after the death of King George VI.Photo: Smith Archive / Alamy Stock Photo
In almost 70 years of her reign,Queen Elizabethhas managed to avoid a single style mishap — but that very nearly wasn’t the case.
After the sudden death of her father King George VI on February 6, 1952, while the then-Princess Elizabeth andPrince Philipwere on a break from their Commonwealth tour in Kenya, the new Queen had to rush back to the U.K. The hasty return meant that she boarded the plane in the summer clothes that she had been wearing (reportedly a beige dress with white shoes) rather than the black mourning outfit she would have been expected to wear when she arrived in England.
According to Lady Pamela Hicks, Philip’s cousin and a lady-in-waiting to the Queen, the situation was rectified within moments of touching back down in the U.K. “A black dress was quickly smuggled on board, because we didn’t have a black dress. So she quickly had to change,” Lady Pamela recalled during a chat with her daughter India onThe India Hicks Podcast.
Queen Elizabeth arriving back in the UK on Feb 7, 1952.Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Bethan Holt, author ofThe Queen: 70 Years of Majestic Style(to be released on April 19), says the Queen would have been very anxious to get the right outfit for the somber occasion.
“She is very serious about wanting to look impeccable and get it right,” Holt tells PEOPLE. “There’s a reason she has a team of dressers and milliners at her beck and call to make sure that every outfit is perfect. It’s no mistake that two of the women who she’s been closest to during her reign are a woman called Bobo MacDonald and Angela Kelly — and both of them were her dressers.”
Princess Elizabeth returning to the UK as Queen after the death of King George VI.Alamy Stock Photo
Can’t get enough ofPEOPLE’s Royals coverage?Sign up for our free Royals newsletterto get the latest updates onKate Middleton,Meghan Markleand more!
The Queen managed a weak smile and waved as she departed the airport for Clarence House. The following day, she read an official proclamation declaring her reign asQueen ElizabethII.
source: people.com
