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Acknowledgements
By kind permission of Her Majesty The Queen I was given access to papers in the Royal
Archives at Windsor dealing with her life prior to her accession. I am indebted to Oliver
Everett, the Librarian and Assistant Keeper of the Queen’s Archives, to the former
Registrar, Lady de Bellaigue, and to Bridget Wright of the Royal Library for their
guidance, help and kindness. I am grateful to the following librarians and archivists for
facilitating access to their collections: Melanie Barber, Deputy Librarian and Archivist,
Lambeth Palace Library; Alan Bell, Librarian, and the staff of the London Library; Dr B.
S. Benediksz, former Sub-Librarian Special Collections, University of Birmingham; K. V.
Bligh, Archivist (Modern Collection), and the staff of the House of Lords Record Office;
Michael Bott, Archivist, and the staff of the Archives, Reading University Library; Peter
B. Boyden, Head of Archives, Photographs, Film and Sound, National Army Museum;
Michael Brunton, Librarian, Time Magazine; Dr Penelope Bullock, Librarian, Balliol
College, Oxford; Mary Clapinson, Keeper of Western Manuscripts, Bodleian Library,
University of Oxford; Raymond H. Geselbracht, Supervisory Archivist, Harry S. Truman
Library; Alan Kucia, Archivist, Churchill Archives Centre, Churchill College, Cambridge.
I am more grateful than I can adequately express to all those who have helped me
towards an understanding of my subject. For obvious reasons I have preserved the
confidentiality of everyone connected with the royal family and household. I am also
deeply grateful to the following: the late Larry Adler, the late Sir Godfrey Agnew, Mrs
Fiona Asquith, the late Sir Reginald Bennett, Michael Bloch, Anthony Blond, Peter
Blond, the late Lord Bonham-Carter, Lady Butler, the late Earl of Carnavon, the late
Dame Barbara Cartland, the late Sir Hugh Casson, Nicholas Courtney, Rohan Daft, Lord
Deedes, Professor David Dilks, the late Lady Margaret Douglas-Home, Margaret Forster,
Lady Fraser, Geoffrey Gibbs, Martin Gilbert, Robert Golden, John Grigg, Mrs Eileen Hall
(Eileen Heron), Philip Hall, the late Dowager Viscountess Hambleden, The Hon. R. J. L.
Hawke AC, Tim Heald, Lord Healey of Riddlesden, Lord Jenkins of Hillhead, Jereen
Jones, Robert Lacey, Mrs Derek Lawson, Dr Hugh L’Etang, the Countess of Longford, the
late Lady Alexandra Metcalfe, Edward Mirzoeff, Andrew Morton, Peter Nahum, Tim
O’Donovan, Lord Owen, John Pearson, Roland Pym, The Honourable Sir Shridath
Ramphal, the late Sir Robert Rhodes James, Andrew Roberts, the late Sir Frank Roberts,
Mrs Patsy Robertson, Kenneth Rose, the late Hon. Sir Steven Runciman, Giles St Aubyn,
R. G. H. Seitz, the late Lord Sherfield, William Sitwell, Noreen Taylor, D. R. Thorpe, the
late Peter Townend, the late Group Captain Peter Townsend, Hugo Vickers, Lord
Wakeham of Maldon, Christopher Warwick, the late Viscount Whitelaw, Alan Williams
MP, the Rt Rev. Robin and Mrs Woods, James Whitaker and Philip Ziegler.
This book would have been impossible without the help and support of everyone