Queen Elizabeth’s greatest love was, of course, Prince Philip, her husband of 73 years, but it’s safe to say she endured some tough competition from her beloved corgis.
Welsh breeds became synonymous with British royalty and proved to be a constant presence during the Queen’s reign. But according to vanity fairThey were not always man’s best friends and could even be described as “psychopaths.”
Award-winning journalist Craig Brown’s new book A Voyage Around the Queen tells the story of the ferocious stray dogs and their “unpredictable” nature, which saw them deliver devastating bites to members of the Royal Family – and even a politician.
While the late monarch’s first dog, Susan, was gifted to her in 1944, she would go on to own a whopping 83 corgis and dorgis over 14 generations. By 1984, there was nothing that could stop their rambunctious pets, who by then counted Prince Edward and the Queen Mother as their victims.
In fact, Princess Anne was recruited to discipline her mischievous dorgi, Honey, a cross between the Welsh Corgi and the Dachshund, but the “gentle” princess was no match.
Queen Elizabeth’s beloved Welsh corgis were far from nice and were even ‘pyscho’ at times (pictured: Queen Elizabeth II with one of her corgis at Sandringham, 1970)
Award-winning journalist Craig Brown tells the story of the ferocious stray dogs and their “unpredictable” nature, which saw them deliver bites to members of the Royal Family and even a politician (the late Queen is pictured with her pet). corgis in Windsor in 1977)
“It turns out that Corgis are an unpredictable and temperamental bunch, one minute affectionate, the next psychopaths, the Corleones of the dog world,” the journalist wrote.
She also talked about Dookie, the first corgi to enter the Royal Family, beginning the Queen’s lifelong love affair with dogs.
‘Dookie did not restrict his aggression to humans; “I would gladly attack the dining room chairs at the Royal Lodge, the family home in Windsor Great Park,” he added.
He also revealed that their ferocity was passed down from generation to generation, as were their bites, and Piper, Honey’s dorgi great-great-grandmother, got the best of visitors to the palace and the monarch’s family.
At this point, the Queen’s only daughter was recruited to discipline the dogs, but the writer recalled that she had a “weakness” for “biters.”
According to the book, the monarch eventually found a way to control her dogs using a powerful bagpipe tune, and since then she was never caught without a game at hand.
Far from her cute and cuddly appearance, the Queen herself fell victim to her beloved corgis and was once forced to receive three stitches after a nasty bite.
In 1968, royal staff were even asked to put up a “Beware of Dog” sign at Balmoral after one of the corgis reportedly bit the postman.
He said Princess Anne (pictured) was recruited to discipline her mother’s mischievous dorgi, Honey, but the “soft” princess was no match.
The Queen Mother was one of the many victims bitten by her daughter’s corgis (Pictured: The Queen Mother with a Royal Household footman while carrying her corgis, at Heathrow Airport in London in 1990)
The late Queen Elizabeth owned a whopping 83 corgis and dorgis over 14 generations (pictured: the then princess at her home in Piccadilly, London, in July 1936).
More than 20 years later, the royal family reportedly hired an “animal psychologist” to tame the dogs.
In incidents dating back almost 70 years, corgi victims included palace clock keeper Leonard Hubbard in 1954, who was bitten by Susan upon entering the nursery at the Royal Lodge, Windsor.
Later that year, one of the Queen Mother’s corgis bit a police officer on duty in London, a Wikipedia page on royal corgis says.
In February 1989, it was reported that the Royal Family had hired an animal psychologist to tame the dogs after they developed a habit of biting them and staff.
In more serious incidents, in 1989 the Queen Mother’s dog, Ranger, led a pack of corgis that attacked and killed the Queen’s beloved corgi, Chipper.
However, the Queen was not exempt from this problematic behavior, as in March 1991 she was bitten by one of the dogs after trying to stop a fight between ten of her corgis. Then they had to receive three stitches in their left hand.
John Collins, the Queen Mother’s chauffeur, had to receive a tetanus injection after he also tried to intervene.