Royal Family News: The Time Elizabeth Windsor ‘Fell Asleep A Princess, Awoke A Queen’

British royal family news reveals that Queen Elizabeth is celebrating her Platinum Jubilee this year, a momentous occasion that commemorates seven decades as monarch. Her reign began on February 6, 1952, with the unfortunate and untimely death of her father King George VI. Overnight the reigning UK monarch died of lung cancer at the royal Sandringham residence in Norfolk.

Royal Family News – Elizabeth Fell Asleep A Princess And She Awoke A Queen

At the time of her father’s death, Princess Elizabeth was in Kenya, then a British colony. She and her husband Prince Philip were there for a tour of the Commonwealth. The 25-year-old was on the tour in place of her ailing father and she was told the news in the wilderness of the Aberdare Range.

Technically the young married couple had taken a night off of the tour to stay at Treetops hotel, a game-watching lodge high up in a tree in the Aberdares interior.

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Author Jim Corbett accompanied the royal couple to Treetops. To mark the unprecedented occurrence of Elizabeth’s royal changeover he wrote in the visitor book: “For the first time in the history of the world, a young girl climbed into a tree one day a Princess and, after having what she described as her most thrilling experience, she climbed down from the tree next day a queen.”

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It was her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, who broke the sad news to Elizabeth. Treetops overlooked a watering hole, perched in a giant fig tree. It debuted in 1932 and offered the privileged and wealthy the chance to see wildlife up close, and safely.

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While they were there Queen Elizabeth and Philip kept a handwritten card of the animals they saw grazing and that sheet of paper is framed and to this day remains inside a new and improved version of Treetops.

Among the notes are, “Rhinos all night” dated February 5/6, 1952 and, “in the morning, two bulls fighting.” The couple also noted there were large herds of elephant, “about 40,” vying for a spot at the watering hole.

The royal visit and the circumstances surrounding it, made Treetops one of the most famous hotels in the world. Two years after the historic visit Treetops burned down in a rumored arson attack by, “anti-colonial Mau Mau rebels,” according to NDTV. A much larger hotel was built nearby and visitors can book a stay to this day.

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