Darling Elizabeth, this is for you on your birthday. There is only one piece of jewellery I want to give you, so until I can offer you a ring, the enclosed is a token to let you know that I am thinking of you with all my love, Philip.

Elizabeth opens the box and lifts the tissue paper to release the sweet smell of roses, lavender, and lily of the valley. Inside lie three perfect bars of soap, and she smiles as she lifts each to her nose, remembering how she had told him how much she longed for soap during the war. He has remembered. He hasn’t forgotten her. He is thinking of her. That is all she wants.

Darling Elizabeth … with all my love. They are just the things people say in letters, Elizabeth knows. It doesn’t mean anything. But still, her heart lifts.

At six o’clock, she sits alone with Margaret and an engineer in a small, quiet room to read her message. Her heart bangs against her ribs as the engineer counts her down and then points to indicate that she should begin. Taking a deep breath, Elizabeth starts to read. Her voice sounds high and rushed at first, and she steadies herself for the second paragraph. ‘Let me begin by saying “thank you” to all the thousands of kind people who have sent me messages of goodwill. This is a happy day for me, but it is also one that brings serious thoughts, thoughts of life looming ahead with all its challenges and with all its opportunity.’

The speech lasts for six minutes but it feels like much longer to Elizabeth. She keeps thinking of all those people, millions and millions of them, listening to her, to her, and when she makes her final declaration, the truth of it resonates through her.

‘I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong.’

The words feel momentous. As she sits in front of the microphone, she realises truly, perhaps for the first time, what her life will be. When the speech is over, the engineer grins and gives her the thumbs up, and Elizabeth relaxes with a rather shaky smile. The broadcast is done but her task is just beginning. Her duty, her purpose, is to serve the country and the Commonwealth.

It is a vow she intends to keep.

Chapter 33

London, May 1947

‘I suppose I know why you’re here,’ the King says in a resigned voice as he studies Philip over his desk.

‘I imagine you do, sir.’

Philip is still smarting at having been refused permission to meet HMS Vanguard when she docked. Nor was he allowed to be part of the welcoming party at Buckingham Palace when the royal family finally returned from South Africa. It’s true that he didn’t want to greet Elizabeth in public, but his deliberate exclusion rankles.