by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2014

Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise was born at Clarence House in London, England on August 15, 1950. She is the second child of four children and the only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born a Prince of Greece and Denmark).

At the time of Anne’s birth, her mother was Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh and the sovereign was her grandfather, King George VI. The children of a daughter of a British sovereign would not usually have been accorded the style Royal Highness or the titles Prince/Princess as in the case of Anne’s own children. However, on October 22, 1948, Anne’s grandfather King George VI issued letters patent allowing the children of his eldest daughter and heiress presumptive, to use the style and title of a royal prince or princess. Therefore, Anne was Her Royal Highness Princess Anne of Edinburgh at birth.

Anne was baptized in the Music Room of Buckingham Palace in London, England on October 21, 1950. Her godparents were:

• Queen Elizabeth (her maternal grandmother, later Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother)
• Hereditary Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg (her paternal aunt, born Princess Margarita of Greece)
• Princess Andrew of Greece and Denmark (her paternal grandmother, born Princess Alice of Battenberg) – for whom Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone stood proxy
• Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma (her paternal great-uncle, born Prince Louis of Battenberg)
• Reverend The Honorable Andrew Elphinstone (her mother’s maternal first cousin)

King George VI died on February 6, 1952, and his elder daughter Princess Elizabeth became Queen. Upon her mother’s accession to the throne, Anne was styled Her Royal Highness The Princess Anne. Anne was too young to attend her mother’s coronation, but she did make an appearance on the balcony of Buckingham Palace.

Catherine Peebles who was the governess of Prince Charles was also Anne’s governess and she was responsible for Anne’s early education. In 1959, a Girl Guides company, 1st Buckingham Palace Company was formed at the palace to allow Anne to socialize with other girls. Similar Girl Guide companies had been formed at Buckingham Palace for Anne’s mother and her aunt Princess Margaret. From 1963-1968, Anne attended Benenden School, an independent boarding school for girls in Kent, England.

Anne has three brothers:

• King Charles III of the United Kingdom (born 1948), married  (1) Lady Diana Spencer, daughter of John Spencer, 8th Earl Spencer, had two sons, divorced  (2) Camilla Shand Parker-Bowles, no children
• Prince Andrew, The Duke of York (born 1960), married Sarah Ferguson, had two daughters, divorced
• Prince Edward, The Duke of Edinburgh (born 1964), married Sophie Rhys-Jones, had one daughter and one son

From a young age, Princess Anne was passionate about riding and she soon became an excellent equestrienne. In 1971, Anne won the European Eventing Championship and was voted the BBC Sports Personality of the Year.  For more than five years Anne competed with the British eventing team, winning a silver medal in both individual and team disciplines in the 1975 European Eventing Championship. In the 1976 Montreal Summer Olympics, Anne competed as a member of the British equestrian team.

Anne’s love of riding led her to meet her first husband, Mark Phillips, also a member of the British equestrian team, and the winner of a gold medal in the Team Three Day Event in the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics and a silver medal in the Team Three Day Event in the 1988 Seoul Summer Olympics. Anne and Mark’s engagement was announced on May 29, 1973, and they were married in Westminster Abbey in London, England on November 14, 1973. It is believed that Queen Elizabeth II offered Mark a peerage upon his marriage, which was declined. The Queen purchased the Gatcombe Park estate in Gloucestershire, England for Princess Anne upon her marriage. In 1989, Princess Anne and Mark Phillips separated and their divorce was final on April 23, 1992.

• Unofficial Royalty: Wedding of Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips

Anne and Peter had a son and a daughter:

• Peter Phillips (born 1977), married Autumn Kelly, had two daughters, divorced
  • Savannah Anna Kathleen Phillips (born 2010)
  • Isla Elizabeth Phillips (born 2012)
• Zara Phillips (born 1981), married Mike Tindall, had two daughters and one son
  • Mia Grace Tindall (born 2014)
  • Lena Elizabeth (born 2018)
  • Lucas Philip (born 2021)

Peter was the first grandchild of Queen Elizabeth II and his daughters were the Queen’s first great-grandchildren. Like her parents, Zara is also an equestrian and in the Team Three Day Event at the 2012 London Olympics, she won a silver medal which was presented to her by her mother.

On March 20, 1974, an unsuccessful attempt was made to kidnap Anne, as she and her husband were being driven along the Pall Mall on their way back to Buckingham Palace after a charity film show. Anne was not hurt, but several people were shot and injured including Anne’s personal protection officer and her chauffeur.

• BBC: On This Day – March 20, 1974 – Kidnap attempt on Princess Anne

On June 13, 1987, Queen Elizabeth granted her daughter the style Princess Royal, a style that can be awarded to the eldest daughter of the monarch. The style is held for life, so a princess cannot be given the style during the lifetime of another Princess Royal. The use of “Princess Royal” came about when Queen Henrietta Maria, daughter of King Henri IV of France and wife of King Charles I of England, wanted to imitate the way the eldest daughter of the King of France was styled “Madame Royale”. Since 1987, Anne’s style has been Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal. Besides Anne, there have been six other Princesses Royal:

• Mary, Princess Royal (1631–1660), daughter of King Charles I
• Anne, Princess Royal (1709–1759), daughter of King George II
• Charlotte, Princess Royal (1766–1828), daughter of King George III
• Victoria, Princess Royal (1840–1901), daughter of Queen Victoria
• Louise, Princess Royal (1867–1931), daughter of King Edward VII
• Mary, Princess Royal (1897–1965), daughter of King George V

On December 12, 1992, Anne married Commander (now Vice Admiral) Timothy Laurence, a Royal Navy officer, in a private Church of Scotland ceremony at Crathie Kirk in Ballater, Scotland, where the Royal Family worships when they stay at nearby Balmoral Castle.  Anne was married in the Church of Scotland because it allowed the remarriage of divorced people. She had met her second husband when he served as an Equerry to Queen Elizabeth II.  Like her first husband, Anne’s second husband did not receive a peerage.

• Unofficial Royalty: Wedding of Princess Anne and Timothy Laurence

The Princess Royal carries out a full schedule of engagements in the United Kingdom and abroad and is involved with over 200 charities and organizations in an official capacity. Organizations, she is involved with include:

• The Save the Children Fund, President since 1970
• The Princess Royal Trust for Carers
• The WISE Campaign (Women into Science, Engineering, and Construction)
• St John Ambulance Foundation
• International Olympic Committee
• Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, commonly known as the Royal Society
• University of Edinburgh, Chancellor

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