What Really Happened When The Queen Met Jackie Kennedy (2024)

Did the First Lady bad mouth Queen Elizabeth?

What Really Happened When The Queen Met Jackie Kennedy (1)

It was the meeting of two icons: Jackie Kennedy, the glamorous First Lady and wife of JFK, and Queen Elizabeth II, the young monarch. There has been much speculation about what might have gone down between The Queen and Jackie Kennedy - but what really happened?

When did The Queen meet Jackie Kennedy?

In June 1961, just months after Kennedy began his presidential term, he and Jackie visited Buckingham Palace, where a black tie banquet was hosted in the President's honour. There was already tension in the run up to the event: there was some initial hesitation about inviting Jackie's sister Princess Lee Radziwill and her brother-in-law Polish Prince Stanisław Albrecht Radziwiłł as traditionally, divorcées were not invited to State Dinners at Buckingham Palace but the royals eventually relented, as it was only a banquet and not an official State Dinner. Apparently, Princess Margaret and Princess Marina - two attendees Jackie had specifically requested - were not invited to the party.

Jackie wore a pale blue silk Chez Ninon gown for the occasion. As a gift, JFK presented the Queen with a signed picture in a silver Tiffany's frame, with the message: 'To Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, with appreciation and the highest esteem, John F. Kennedy.'

What Really Happened When The Queen Met Jackie Kennedy (2)

Did Jackie Kennedy insult the Queen?

In Netflix's The Crown, Jackie badmouths The Queen after their meeting, calling her 'a middle-aged woman so incurious, unintelligent and unremarkable that Britain’s new reduced place in the world was not a surprise but an inevitability'. But did she really say this?

Rumor has it that she may have made some less than flattering remarks about the Queen. According to theTheTelegraph, the American writer Gore Vidal remembers Jackie Kennedy saying Elizabeth was'pretty heavy going' and that she felt the Queen 'resented' her. Society photographer Cecil Beaton allegedly wrote in his diary that Jackie said she was unimpressed by the monarch and the palace.

So it seems The Crown may have taken some creative licence when writing that specific line of dialogue.

Did The Queen ever meet Jackie Kennedy again?

The queen invited Jackie to lunch on 21 March 1962 as she was visiting the UK this time without her husband. Which would suggest Jackie did not hurt the monarch's feelings in any significant way. After the lunch Jackie was notably discreet speaking to the press: 'I don’t think I should say anything about it except how grateful I am and how charming she was.'

What Really Happened When The Queen Met Jackie Kennedy (3)

In 1965, two years after JFK was assassinated, the Queen Elizabeth met Jackie again in more tragic circ*mstances, as she opened a memorial in his honour at Runnymede, Berkshire. The dedication was attended by Jackie, and her two childrenCarolineand John.

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What Really Happened When The Queen Met Jackie Kennedy (2024)

FAQs

What Really Happened When The Queen Met Jackie Kennedy? ›

According to the TheTelegraph, the American writer Gore Vidal remembers Jackie Kennedy saying Elizabeth was 'pretty heavy going' and that she felt the Queen 'resented' her. Society photographer Cecil Beaton allegedly wrote in his diary that Jackie said she was unimpressed by the monarch and the palace.

Did the Queen really meet Jackie Kennedy? ›

In an excerpt from Royal Audience, author David Charter revisits the complexities of the late Queen Elizabeth's meeting with Jackie Kennedy in early 1960s Britain.

Did the Queen go to JFK's funeral? ›

Dignitaries participating in the funeral procession of President John F. Kennedy depart the White House en route to Arlington National Cemetery. The man in the center in the naval uniform is Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, representing Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain. All others are unidentified.

What was the cause of death of Jacqueline Kennedy? ›

On May 19, 1994, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, one of the most famous First Ladies, died at age 64 in her New York City apartment from non-Hodgkin lymphoma cancer.

Did Queen Elizabeth watch the Crown? ›

Queen Elizabeth II

Nevertheless there have been a few stories that indicate that the late monarch did watch some episodes of the show – an image we're all too keen to seize upon.

What were Jackie Kennedy's last words? ›

The look on her husband's face after he was shot would haunt Jackie for the rest of her life, revealed Christopher Anderson's These Few Precious Days: The Final Year of Jack with Jackie. He looked puzzled, as The Mirror describes it. The last words she ever got to say to him were, “I love you, Jack.

How accurate is the crown? ›

The show, which takes viewers behind the closed doors of royal life, undoubtedly strays into the realms of supposition on occasion. But much of the action is drawn the very real personal and political challenges that beset many members of the British royal family in the 20th and into the 21st century.

Why did Jackie Kennedy keep the pink dress on? ›

Why Jacqueline Kennedy Didn't Take Off Her Pink Suit After JFK Was Assassinated. The first lady continued to wear the outfit covered in her husband's blood to convey a message and as a way of coping with her own trauma.

What was JFK buried with? ›

Who dug JFK's grave? ›

Remembering Clifton Pollard, JFK's Grave Digger.

Was Jackie Kennedy shy? ›

John was in the middle of campaigning for reelection to the Senate, and Jackie campaigned with him when she could. Although she was rather shy and retiring by nature, the crowds who came to his campaign events found her immensely attractive, and she won her husband's considerable gratitude and approval.

What happened to Elizabeth Tudor? ›

Elizabeth I died at Richmond Palace, after a short illness, in the early hours of 24 March 1603, aged 69.

Why was Jackie Kennedy so popular? ›

What was Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis known for? Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis was noted for her style and elegance. As first lady, she made the White House a showcase for America's most talented and accomplished individuals, and worked to restore the White House to its original elegance and to protect its holdings.

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