Queen Elizabeth.Photo: UPI/Getty
A regal evening meant disappointment forQueen Elizabeth’s beloved dogs.
Caroline Perry, author ofThe Corgi and the Queen, tells PEOPLE that while researching her new picture book she discovered that the monarch’s headwear sparked different reactions with her pets when she walked into their room at Buckingham Palace (yes, there was a room for the dogs!).
“When the Queen would walk into this room wearing her tiara, the dogs would slump on the floor looking really sad because they knew she was the Queen and they knew she was going to an official work function,” Perry says. “When she walked in in her headscarf, they would jump up and bark and rush to the door because they knew she was off-duty Elizabeth, and she was going to take them for their walk.”
Perry adds, “I love that the corgis knew: ‘Oh no, not the tiara again!’ "
Queen Elizabethwas extremely hands-on with her dogs, fromoverseeing their food menuto making them stockings at Christmas, Perry says.
“She really did adore every single one of the dogs she had as a companion,” the author notes.
Queen Elizabeth and her dogs.Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images
Perry’s book documents the “love story” betweenQueen Elizabethand her corgi Susan, who she received as a birthday gift when she turned 18. Susan was a constant companion for the royal during tough times, including World War II and the death of King George VI, as well as special moments like the future Queen’s wedding day toPrince Philip.
“That’s how much she loved Susan,” Perry, who participated inQueen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee Pageant in June andsaw the monarchas she stepped out on Buckingham Palace’s balcony, says. “She just did not want that legacy to end.”
The Corgi and the Queen.Godwin Books
Perry adds that the oftentimes rambunctious dogs were an expression of the Queen’s own personality.
“She couldn’t choose her life, but she could choose her companions,” Perry tells PEOPLE. “The fact that these corgis are so spirited, so lively and so mischievous, I think in some way that was her way of expressing how she felt inside but wasn’t able to convey. She was so prim and proper and never put a foot wrong, did she? Yet these naughty dogs are doing all kinds of things that maybe she wished she could do.”
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Queen Elizabeth and Susan.Lisa Sheridan/Hulton Archive/Getty
source: people.com
