‘My corgis are my family,’ The Queen once declared.
Her Majesty’s love for her corgis is well known and the dogs were often seen by her side at her royal residences throughout her life.
Queen Elizabeth II had over 30 corgis and preferred the breed because of their ‘energy and untamed spirit’.
The Queen’s love for corgis was solidified after she was given her first, Susan, for her 18th birthday by her parents in 1944.
Susan was much-loved and even joined the young Elizabeth and her new husband Philip on their honeymoon, kicking off a royal dynasty of her own, with her name etched onto her offspring’s tombstones over the years.
The Queen’s corgis were her loyal companions and she took a hands-on approach with them, taking them for walks, on her holidays and feeding them herself.
The Queen even introduced the new breed of dog known as the ‘dorgi’ when her corgi Tiny was mated with a dachshund ‘sausage dog’ called Pipkin which belonged to her sister, Princess Margaret.
When asked how the diminutive dachshunds coped with the comparatively colossal corgis, the Queen reportedly replied in a matter-of-fact manner: ‘Oh, it’s very simple – we have a little brick they stand on.’
Each night the dogs were fed at 5pm and were given gourmet meals created by a chef. Their menu, which would often include chicken breast and fillet steak and other fresh ingredients, would be posted in the royal kitchen each day, according to Brian Hoey in the 2013 book, Pets by Royal Appointment.
After their meals’ delivery, The Queen was known to pour a little gravy over it before they tucked in.
And let’s not forget, she appeared during the London Olympics opening ceremony with three corgis by her side, alongside Daniel Craig as James Bond.
Monty, Willow and another corgi Holly, greeted the secret agent, played by Daniel Craig, as he arrived at the Palace to accept a mission from the Queen.
The dogs ran down the stairs, performed tummy rolls and then stood as a helicopter took off for the Olympic stadium, carrying Bond and a stunt double of the monarch.
Monty, who was 13, died a couple of months later. Holly was put down in October 2016 after suffering from an illness, then leaving Willow as the Queen’s final corgi descended from Susan.
Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams tells Metro.co.uk: ‘If she had not been the monarch, she would have been happy as a countrywoman surrounded by her dogs and horses.
‘Her image, carefully cultivated over the decades, is iconic and includes her corgis on whom she has always doted.’
The royal love affair with the breed actually dates back to Queen Elizabeth II’s childhood – when her father, King George VI, brought home the family’s first corgi, a puppy named Dookie in 1933.
After the Queen was gifted Susan a long line of corgis followed.
While lots of Queen Elizabeth’s corgi names have been traditional – such as Monty, Susan and Holly, Emma, Linnet, Noble, Willow and Heather – there have been a number of wildcards, too.
Some of these include Candy, Sugar, Foxy, Bushy, Brush, Honey, Whisky, Sherry, Vulcan, Cider, Berry, Flash, Spick, Span, Tiny and Bisto Oxo.
‘She has a great love of animals, being one of the world’s equine experts and is also credited with the creation of the dorgi – a cross between a corgi and a dachshund,’ adds royal expert Richard.
The monarch’s passion for her pets shines through and is reflected in their incredibly lavish Buckingham Palace lifestyle.
Insiders say the dogs have their own base in the Palace, referred to as ‘the corgi room’ where they sleep in elevated baskets to avoid the draft.
Her darling dogs were also given special treats at Christmas too.
Richard adds: ‘They reportedly also get their own Christmas stockings too.
‘It has been claimed that the corgis can be temperamental, but the Queen has had over 30 of them and they have a very special place in her heart.’
Her beloved Susan is said to have bitten a royal clockwinder on the ankle and was partial to snapping at staff’s legs.
She was not the only biter either, as one of the Queen’s corgis, from Susan’s dynasty, Whisky is said to have torn the seat out of a Guard officer’s trousers.
It was reported that a footman at the Palace found a novel way of getting his own back.
He spiked the dogs’ food and water with whisky and gin, then watched in amusement as the tipsy animals staggered around.
But his act of treason was discovered and he was demoted.
The Queen’s love of her dogs often saw her take their lead and set off on walks twice a day. It is said if the Queen came in wearing a tiara, they laid glumly on the carpet – if she was in a headscarf, they knew it was time for walkies.
The Duke of York said his mother’s love of her corgis helped keep her fit.
‘She is just amazing at her age and she walks a long way, the dogs keep her active,’ he said.
The corgis were given star treatment and would make their way through royal residences alongside Her Majesty, even joining dinner with celebrities on occasion.
Singer Max Bygraves once revealed how, when dining with the Queen, a flatulent corgi left him red-faced.
‘I hope you don’t think that was me,’ he told the Queen.
But while, there were often times of joy and companionship, The Queen felt their loss through the years.
In 2003, as the royals were gathering for Christmas at Sandringham in Norfolk, one befell a tragic fate.
Pharos – one of the Queen’s oldest corgis – was savaged by another dog and had to be put down.
The Queen was left devastated over the death.
In 2020, the Queen was again left heartbroken when one of her beloved dogs, Vulcan, passed away of ‘old age’ at Windsor Castle leaving her with just one dog, Candy.
In 2021, the monarch was gifted one corgi and one dorgi pups by the Duke of York to help her cope with Prince Phillip’s illness.
The Queen named the dorgi Fergus after her uncle who was killed in action during the First World War, and the corgi Muick, pronounced Mick, after Loch Muick on the Balmoral estate.
Sadly, dorgi Fergus died aged just a few months and was later replaced with a new corgi puppy, from Andrew and Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie for her official 95th birthday, who the Queen named Sandy.
The two remaining dogs are older canine Candy and the other corgi puppy called Muick.
It is thought following The Queen’s death on Thursday that the dogs will be later cared for by The Duke of York.
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