Queen Elizabeth feared that William would be a ‘lazy king’
Queen Elizabeth died fearing that her grandson Prince William would one day become a “famous monarch” rather than a dutiful sovereign. RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Details of her fear are detailed by royal biographer Robert Jobson in his forthcoming book The Windsor Legacywriting that the late monarch, who died in 2022 at the age of 96, privately worried that William, 43, might allow the trappings of fame and modern popularity to overshadow his sense of royal duty.
Her concerns, he says, reflected her lifelong belief that service should always come before self-interest. Jobson said: “Although she loved William and had much to admire, she told insiders she feared he would become a ‘famous monarch’ rather than a devotee.”
He added that her doubts were shaped by a series of incidents in her final years, including times when she felt the Prince of Wales was “too rigid” and not yet ready for the ruthless demands of royalty.
One such moment came in July 2022, when the Queen, then frail and increasingly dependent on walking sticks, was due to open a new 29-bed facility at Thames Hospice near Windsor.
It was an appointment she was reluctant to cancel because she had a personal connection through a retired employee who once cared for the birds at the Royal Aviary.
According to Jobson, when the Queen asked William to replace her, the Queen declined, citing family obligations. The decision left her disappointed and irritated.
“She is said to have said mockingly, ‘Isn’t that what nannies and police officers are for?’” Jobson writes.
Ultimately, Princess Anne accompanied her mother to the event – the Queen’s last official engagement in England.
A royal aide told it RadarOnline.com: “The Queen adored William, but worried that he sometimes treated royal duty as a job with set hours, rather than a vocation. She often said that being sovereign is not about convenience – it is about fortitude.”
She died because she was afraid that William would just want to be a famous king and would be quite lazy.
Following the death of Prince Philip in 2021, the Queen’s inner circle shrank. Her last years were spent largely at Windsor Castle, where her health deteriorated and her days were marked by loneliness.
The now ex-Prince Andrew – who was stripped of his royal titles over his Jeffrey Epstein scandal – and his former wife Sarah Ferguson were among her most frequent visitors, while King Charles and Camilla often stayed overnight.
William and Kate, who lived near Adelaide Cottage, offered her some comfort by bringing their children to visit.
But even as she enjoyed watching her great-grandchildren play, the queen confided to courtiers her concerns about the future direction of the monarchy.
A palace source said: ‘She feared that the monarchy to which she had devoted her entire life would one day become more focused on appearances than on genuine duty and service.’
Elizabeth’s deep sense of duty persisted even in her weakness.
When staff suggested she rest at Balmoral during her final weeks, she insisted on keeping her promise to meet outgoing Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his successor Liz Truss on September 6, just two days before her death.
In her last summer, Jobson writes, the queen found solace in the Scottish Highlands.
“Time was running out, it seemed, for everything she wanted to accomplish before it was too late,” Jobson writes.
One morning at Craigowan Lodge she broke her own rule by inviting local grocer George Strachan for breakfast.
Jobson said: “She broke her strict rule of not having breakfast guests outside the family and made herself available. She just wanted to say goodbye: a quiet gesture of loyalty and grace.”
It was a meeting that meant that Elizabeth’s reign would end as it began – marked by devotion to duty, self-control and an unwavering belief in service to self-interest.
