Throughout her long reign, Queen Elizabeth II consistently kept a private diary to note daily events and document her activities.
Unlike her great-great-grandmother, Queen Victoria, who famously wrote colorful and detailed entries, Elizabeth kept hers concise—a practice she continued until her final entry, just two days before her death.
Royal biographer Robert Hardman, who found the diary while conducting research, shared that she mentioned her private secretary, Edward Young, had visited her and made notes about the process of swearing in new Privy Council members.
The last entry was made at Balmoral, where she passed away on September 8, two days after meeting and swearing in the new prime minister, Liz Truss.
“It transpires that she was still writing it at Balmoral two days before her death,” Hardman writes. “Her last entry was as factual and practical as ever.
“It could have been describing another normal working day starting in the usual way – ‘Edward came to see me’ – as she noted the arrangements which her private secretary, Sir Edward Young, had made for the swearing-in of the new ministers of the Truss administration.”
Elizabeth is not the only monarch who maintained a diary during her reign. Queen Victoria famously documented over 60 million words in her diaries, which she kept for nearly 70 years, from the age of 13 until just before her death in 1901.
In contrast to Elizabeth, Victoria provided vivid descriptions of major events in her life, such as her coronation, wedding, and Diamond Jubilee.
Elizabeth once compared her own style of diary writing to Victoria’s when she told the Bishop of Chelmsford: “I keep a diary, but not like Queen Victoria’s. It’s quite small.”
She once explained to diarist Kenneth Rose why she wrote in this manner: “I have no time to record conversations, only events.”
Elizabeth’s father, King George V, also kept a diary, which included some personal details.
On the day of his coronation, June 22, 1911, George provided a detailed description of the weather, writing: “It was overcast & cloudy with some showers & a strongish cool breeze, but better for the people than great heat.”
He also described the event, saying: “The Service in the Abbey was most beautiful, but it was a terrible ordeal. It was grand, yet simple & most dignified and went without a hitch.”
“I nearly broke down when dear David came to do homage to me, as it reminded me so much when I did the same thing to beloved Papa, he did it so well.”
“Darling May looked lovely & it was indeed a comfort to me to have her by my side…. We left Westminster Abbey at 2.15 … with our Crowns on and sceptres in our hands.”
It appears that King Charles is following the tradition of those before him and reportedly keeps his own practical diaries since becoming king.
A senior courtier informed The Telegraph that although “he doesn’t write great narrative diaries like he used to,” he still “scribbles down his recollections and reflections” on a daily basis.