“Very intelligent”, “secret weapon of the monarchy”, “affectionate”… Superlatives rain down on Lady Louise Windsor, the granddaughter of Queen Elizabeth II whom all the British media present as her favourite. But who is this discreet young woman who will turn 19 next November?
The daughter of Prince Edward and Sophia of Wessex, Lady Louise Windsor was born on November 8, 2003, in Frimley, Surrey. She is fifteenth in line to the British throne, behind her younger brother James, due to the male-preference primogeniture rule, amended in 2013 but not retroactive.
Born prematurely, after a complicated delivery, Louise also suffers from esotropia, a form of strabismus corrected in 2006 and then in 2013.
“Premature babies can often get a squint because the eyes are the last thing to go in a child. Her squint was so pronounced when she was little and you had to rush to treat her. But now everything is fine. Her life is perfect.” her mother, Sofia, told her. The express.
Ambassador for the Prevention of Blindness
Due to her visual impairment, Louise became involved with the blind and visually impaired. She has been an ambassador since 2003 of the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, the young woman fought for this cause in Qatar and India, to present prevention programs there.
Louise’s name was revealed on November 27, 2003, about twenty days after her birth. Her christening takes place at Windsor Castle on April 24, 2004. On this occasion, she wears the christening gown commissioned by Queen Victoria, which has been worn by eight generations of royal children. She is the last one to wear it.
Louise was educated at St George’s School before attending St Mary’s School. It is at this select establishment that she majors in English, history, politics and drama, and she participates in the Duke of Edinburgh International Award, a program to encourage young people founded in 1956 by her grandfather Philip de Ella.
“Incredibly close”
Quite removed from the tabloids since birth, she has been absent from social networks, but has been exposed more since 2018. Her first public intervention dates back to 2011. At age 7, that year she was a bridesmaid at Prince William’s wedding . and Kate Middleton, her cousins.
Lady Louise was, according to the British media who point out her resemblance to the Queen at the same age, Elizabeth II’s favorite granddaughter. It is in particular her shared passion for horses that unites them. According to New Idea, the girl used to go on long horseback rides with her grandmother. And after Harry and Meghan stepped down from the Royal Family in 2020, Louise had to take on a bigger role with the Queen.
“The Queen and Lady Louise are incredibly close,” a source told British media in 2021. “She has a head on her shoulders, she’s affectionate. She reminds the Queen of the young woman she once was.” […] They could often be seen riding ponies together. And the queen shared her wisdom with her.”
In 2021, Louise appears in a BBC documentary about Prince Philip. “I really hope he was proud of me,” she says, referring to her shared love of driving. “After a competition, he would always ask me how it went. His eyes would light up because he was happy to talk about it.”
“She is very smart”
Luisa loves to study. “She is very intelligent,” her mother confided to the sunday time. The pandemic has been a difficult time for her: “she struggled with online learning because she preferred to be with her classmates,” Prince Edward revealed to sky news in February 2021.
After working this summer at a garden centerwhere he allegedly helped with checkouts, greeted customers, and pruned and transplanted plants, according to the tabloid Sun, Louise will start her university course in September at St Andrews, where she will study English. She walks like this in the footsteps of Williamwho met his wife Kate there.
For royal correspondent Phil Dampier, Louise is “the monarchy’s secret weapon”: “She appears to be very mature for her age and may become a prominent member of the ruling family in the years to come.” Louise never missed a Trooping the Color show and she fulfilled her first royal engagement abroad at age 12.
His mother, Sophie, had explained in the sunday time wants to educate her daughter “with the idea that[elle devrait] most likely work to earn [sa] She is not a princess either, because her parents decided at their wedding that their children would be called sons of counts, to spare them the burden of royalty, according to the BBC. She chose at 18 not to use her titles of highness real.
Source: BFM TV
