Adored by the British public and a beacon of light in the gloom of World War Two, Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon was once described by Adolf Hitler as ‘the most dangerous woman in Europe’. For many, it’s hard to think of the late Queen Mother as anything other than a harmless grandmama. But there was a side to Elizabeth that few knew about.
The Queen Mother died 22 years ago this month aged 101. She is remembered as the smiling granny with the pastel hats, but beneath this exterior was a woman of ambition, determined to secure the hand of the King of England. She would succeed – but not in the way she imagined.
Elizabeth Angela Marguerite entered the world on 4 August 1900, the ninth of 10 children born
