Queen Elizabeth Took Secrets to Her Grave, Says Royal Expert

Queen Elizabeth Il Looking Serious Before The Race On Gold Cup Day At The Cheltenham National Hunt Festival While Wearing a Blue and Purple checkered coat and a royal blue hat

(Image credit: Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images)

Having led the British Royal Family for 70 years, Queen Elizabeth II's experience as a monarch was unique. From her worldwide travels to living through a plethora of life-changing events, Elizabeth's life wasn't like anyone else's. And according to one royal historian, the former Queen had an amazing ability to keep secrets.

Royal historian David Cannadine discussed the late Queen's secret-keeping ability in his new book, Queen Elizabeth II: A Concise Biography of an Exceptional Sovereign. "She was the keeper of many secrets, the repository and respecter of many confidences, and she never leaked," the author explained.

Modern royals have generally been more open about their emotions in public, but the late Queen apparently wasn't a fan of this approach. Like, at all.

Prince William sitting next to Queen Elizabeth and smiling, both dressed in black, at Remembrance concert — "The Queen never gave interviews, she kept her political views to herself."

"But unlike the Prince and Princess of Wales, Prince Andrew, and Prince Harry, The Queen never gave interviews, she kept her political views to herself, she rarely spoke of her feelings in public, and she abhorred the emotional incontinence that had become so widespread by the end of her reign," Cannadine shared.

David Cannadine

'Queen Elizabeth II: A Concise Biography of an Exceptional Sovereign'

Noting that Elizabeth only occasionally expressed emotion in public, Cannadine explained, "[S]he kept her own counsel, and to have done so successfully across seventy years, when the media was becoming ever more intrusive, and as it became increasingly challenging to maintain any form of confidentiality in the conduct of public business, was in its way an extraordinary achievement."

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Andrew at Royal Ascot at Ascot Racecourse on June 22, 2019 — "She abhorred the emotional incontinence that had become so widespread by the end of her reign."

Basically, Queen Elizabeth's approach to leading the Royal Family was reserved and stoic. And when it came to the many secrets she must have known, the late Queen seemingly took them all to her grave with her.

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Amy Mackelden is the weekend editor at Marie Claire, where she covers celebrity and royal family news. She was the weekend editor at Harper’s BAZAAR for three years, where she covered breaking celebrity and entertainment news, royal stories, fashion, beauty, and politics. Prior to that, she spent a year as the joint weekend editor for Marie Claire, ELLE, and Harper's BAZAAR, and two years as an entertainment writer at Bustle. Her additional bylines include Cosmopolitan, People, The Independent, HelloGiggles, Biography, Shondaland, Best Products, New Statesman, Heat, and The Guardian. Her work has been syndicated by publications including Town & Country, Good Housekeeping, Esquire, Delish, Oprah Daily, Country Living, and Women's Health. Her celebrity interviews include Jennifer Aniston, Jessica Chastain, the cast of Selling Sunset, Emma Thompson, Jessica Alba, and Penn Badgley. In 2015, she delivered an academic paper at Kimposium, the world's first Kardashian conference.