NEED TO KNOW
- Princess Anne will ring in her birthday tomorrow, inspiring a revisit into the royal history around her name
- According to The Queen Mother: The Official Biography by William Shawcross, the name Ann had originally been earmarked for another princess
- However, the child’s parents were pressured to name her something else instead
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Princess Anne will celebrate her 75th birthday tomorrow, and her name has a surprising history.
The royal family expanded on Aug. 15, 1950, when the future Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip welcomed their second child, a daughter. The couple were already parents to a 2-year-old son, the future King Charles, and they named their daughter Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise.
Princess Anne’s first name may have been inspired by another princess born into the British royal family, as Anne had first been floated as the moniker for Princess Margaret.
In the book The Queen Mother: The Official Biography, William Shawcross writes that Queen Elizabeth’s parents, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, originally wanted to give Princess Margaret the first name of Ann. However, the couple buckled after his parents, King George V and Queen Mary, pressured them to name the baby Margaret after Margaret of Scotland.
Quoting a letter from the Queen Mother, who was then known as the Duchess of York, to her mother-in-law, Queen Mary, Shawcross writes that the Queen Mother said: “I am very anxious to call her Ann Margaret, as I think that Ann of York sounds pretty, and Elizabeth and Ann go so well together. I wonder what you think? Lots of people have suggested Margaret, but it has no family links really on either side, and besides she will always be getting mixed up with Margaret the nurserymaid.”
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Shawcross writes that the Queen Mother’s in-laws “were not swayed even by this argument, and the Yorks reluctantly bowed to parental will and decided to call their daughter Margaret Rose instead of Margaret Ann.”
A generation later, then-Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip named their daughter Anne, which was likely a hit with her own parents.
According to Nameberry, Anne is a feminine name of Hebrew, French and English origin meaning “grace,” and it is considered to be one of the most classic girls’ names of all time.
Princess Anne has brought grace and grit to her royal role from the start, and she began undertaking public engagements in 1969 at age 18.
In 1987, her mother, Queen Elizabeth, conferred her with the title of Princess Royal, awarding her the appellation traditionally carried by the sovereign’s eldest daughter and held for life.
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Princess Anne has long been considered one of the “hardest-working” members of the royal family by count of official engagements recorded in The Court Circular and is involved with over 300 charities, organizations and military regiments in the U.K. and around the world today.
Renowned for her dedication to duty and no-nonsense attitude, the Princess Royal gave a sly reply earlier this year when asked if she ever plans to retire!
“I don’t think there’s a retirement program on this particular life,” the Princess Royal told PA about the idea of reducing her duties. “It really isn’t written in, no. It isn’t really an option, no, I don’t think so.”
