As Britain and the world takes time to remember and reflect on the remarkable life and service of HRH Queen Elizabeth II following her recent passing, I wanted to take a few minutes to remember the important role she played (despite being just a teenager) during the Second World War.
Princess Elizabeth was just 13 when war broke out in 1939 but was determined to help out in any way she can, especially when Buckingham Palace was hit by enemy bombs in September, 1940, bringing the war dangerously close to all members of the Royal family.
A month later Princess Elizabeth, along with Princess Margaret, recorded a message sending their best wishes to British children who had been evacuated away from their home. It was broadcast as part of the BBC's children's hour on 13th October, 1940. Despite their young age, the Princesses did their best to rally and encourage the thousands of children listening worldwide by speaking about the importance of supporting the troops fighting overseas and doing whatever possible to ensure victory:
We children at home are full of cheerfulness and courage. We are trying to do all we can to help our gallant sailors, soldiers and airmen, and we are trying too, to bear our own share of the danger and sadness of war. We know, every one of us, that in the end all will be well...
You can listen to the entire broadcast message on the BBC website
Princess Elizabeth also became a poster-child for the 'Dig For Victory' campaign, set up by the British Ministry of Agriculture. Photographs of the Princess working on the garden with a spade were used to encourage families everywhere to grow their own food in times of harsh rationing. Open spaces everywhere were transformed into allotments, from domestic gardens to public parks – even the lawns outside the Tower of London were turned into vegetable patches.
As the war progressed, Elizabeth became increasingly eager to get involved and do her part to show support. Much to the reluctance of the King, Elizabeth signed up to the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) shortly after she turned 18 in 1944.
The ATS was the women’s branch of the British Army during the Second World War. Initially, a voluntary service, the ATS started conscripting unmarried women under the age of 30 to work in agriculture and industry to stop the gap and compensate for the labour shortages across the UK.
After joining, Elizabeth trained as a driver and mechanic with the rank of Second Subaltern. Newspapers at the time dubbed her “Princess Auto Mechanic.” Five months later she was promoted to Junior Commander, which was the equivalent of Captain.
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