Queen Elizabeth II’s Windsor Castle, the perfect life and work balance

From when she was a child to her very last days, Windsor Castle was a constant for Queen Elizabeth II – not only on a professional level but also on a private one.

When she was younger, the then-Princess Elizabeth and her family made Royal Lodge, a mansion on the grounds of Windsor Estate, their country home. As her father ascended the throne and Europe went into war during the 1930s, Elizabeth and her sister, Margaret, spent their time there.

Elizabeth was only 14 when she and Margaret were sent to the castle for much of World War II. Their London home, Buckingham Palace, had faced threats of being bombed by Nazi Germany. It was at Windsor and this historic age when Elizabeth spoke to fellow young evacuees in a radio broadcast. In that broadcast, she encouraged others to find courage during troubling and uncertain times.

A few years later, at 16, she carried out her first inspection of the military regiment during a parade on the grounds. This was the first of what would become many over her long life. When she ascended the throne in 1952, Windsor was made her principal weekend retreat. The private apartments had not been properly occupied since the era of Queen Mary. Thus, they were renovated and modernised as The Queen, Prince Philip, and their children – Prince Charles and Princess Anne took residence.

The castle caught on fire in November 1992. Of course, this was the year The Queen famously called her “annulus horribilis.” The fire lasted 15 hours and caused widespread damage to the Upper Ward. While she was one not to show many emotions, Her Late Majesty could be seen getting emotional as she watched the fire burn.

In her later years, Windsor was made her weekend home. It is also where she stayed for the majority of the pandemic. Another pandemic change, Christmas was hosted there in 2020 rather than at Sandringham House for the first time since 1987. The Queen’s longtime love, Prince Philip, died at Windsor at the age of 99 in April 2021.

Philip and The Queen are buried at King George VI Memorial Chapel at St George’s Chapel. The chapel is located on castle grounds, and the castle is open to the public.