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Take A Look Back At Queen Elizabeth II s Love For Corgis During Her Iconic Reign

For decades, it was common to see the Queen accompanied by several of her four-legged friends.By by Kenneth BachorBuzzFeed News Photo EditorPosted on September 9, 2022, 12:34 amTwitterFacebookLink Bettmann Archive / Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II with one of her corgis at Sandringham House in Norfolk, England, on February 4, 1970. Queen Elizabeth II, who died on Thursday at the age of 96, was known for her many trademarks. Besides her habitual love for afternoon tea and her colorful outfits, the Queen had a fondness for one thing above all else: the corgi. Though the corgi has become a trendy dog in the US in recent years, the Queen was a lifelong champion of the breed and is estimated to have owned well over 30 of them during her reign, with up to four or five at a time. The Queen’s corgis were even featured alongside her and Daniel Craig, as James Bond, in a special video for the London Summer Olympics in 2012. The Queen’s preferred corgi breed is the Pembroke Welsh corgi. Other breeds of corgis include the Cardigan Welsh corgi and the dorgi, which is a cross between a dachshund and a Welsh corgi, with this hybrid being traced back to Queen Elizabeth II herself. In 1971, the dorgi was born by accident, when Tiny, one of the Queen’s corgis, mated with Pipkin, one of her sister Princess Margaret’s dachshunds. The Queen’s fascination with the corgi began when she was 7 years old. It is said that a friend of hers had a corgi and she wanted one too. At the time, Pembroke Welsh corgis were common in Wales, but not so common in England. Dookie (also known by the name Rozavel Golden Eagle) was the royal family’s first corgi and was purchased from a local kennel in 1933 by Elizabeth’s father, King George VI. It wasn’t until her 18th birthday in 1944 that Princess Elizabeth was given a Pembroke Welsh corgi puppy of her own named Susan. This corgi would go on to become the Queen’s faithful companion for years to come, even joining her and Prince Philip on their honeymoon to Scotland in 1947 (the Queen allegedly smuggled Susan under some blankets).Susan, who died in 1959, was bred by the Queen and spawned a lineage that lasted decades (14 generations!), throughout most of her rule. As she reached her 90s, Queen Elizabeth II stopped breeding dogs. The last of Susan’s descendants, Willow, died in 2015, which had a profound impact on the monarch. The Queen is said to be leaving behind four dogs: two corgis, one dorgi, and a cocker spaniel. It is not clear who will care for them in the immediate future. Lisa Sheridan / Studio Lisa / Hulton Archive / Getty Images Princess Elizabeth holds a corgi, circa 1936. Lisa Sheridan / Studio Lisa / Hulton Archive / Getty Images Princesses Elizabeth, left, and Margaret at the windows of the Royal Welsh House with two corgis, June 1936. Hulton-Deutsch / Hulton-Deutsch Collection / Corbis via Getty Images Princess Elizabeth walks a corgi in London's Hyde Park, circa 1940. Lisa Sheridan / Studio Lisa / Hulton Archive / Getty Images Left: Princess Elizabeth on the grounds of her London home 145 Piccadilly with her pet corgis Jane and Dookie, July 1936. Right: Princess Elizabeth holds a Pembroke Welsh corgi, April 1940. Lisa Sheridan / Studio Lisa / Hulton Archive / Getty Images Princesses Elizabeth reads to Princess Margaret, as a corgi named Jane peers out a window, on June 22, 1940. Lisa Sheridan / Hulton Archive / Getty Images Princess Elizabeth, left, and Princess Margaret sit on the lawn at Windsor Castle with a corgi, on July 8, 1941. Lisa Sheridan / Studio Lisa / Hulton Archive / Getty Images Princess Elizabeth holds a corgi on the grounds of Windsor Castle, on May 30, 1944. Bettmann Archive / Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II at Balmoral Castle with one of her corgis, on September 28, 1952. Monty Fresco / Topical Press Agency / Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II with one of her corgis, as she arrives at Buckingham Palace in London from Windsor Castle for Prince Charles's 7th birthday, on November 14, 1955. AFP via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II at her desk with her corgi Susan, on January 31, 1959. PA Images via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip are joined by Sugar, one of her corgis, at Windsor Castle, on June 2, 1959. Bettmann Archive / Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip with their children, Prince Andrew (center), Princess Anne (left) and Prince Charles (right), outside Balmoral Castle in Scotland, on September 8, 1960. Hulton Archive / Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II at Liverpool Street Station with two of her corgis, on February 8, 1968. Mirrorpix via Getty Images; Anwar Hussein / Getty Images Left: Queen Elizabeth II with her family at Windsor Castle, on April 20, 1968. Right: Queen Elizabeth II photographing her corgis at Windsor Great Park in the 1960s. Keystone-France / Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II with two of her corgis on an airport runway in London, on May 20, 1969. STF / AFP via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II arrives at King's Cross railway station with four of her corgis in London, on October 15, 1969. George W. Hales / Fox Photos / Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II with her corgis at Virginia Water in Surrey, England, for the European Driving Championships, on May 12, 1973. National Motor Museum / Heritage Images via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II with one of her corgis and Lord Montagu in 1977. Ron Bell / PA Images via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II with a corgi on the grounds of Sandringham House, Norfolk, England, marking the 30th anniversary of her accession to the throne, on February 6, 1982. Julian Parker / UK Press via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II walks one of her corgis at Windsor Castle, on April 2, 1994, in Windsor, UK. Torsten Blackwood / AFP via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II meets members of the Adelaide Hills Kennel Club and their corgis, on February 28, 2002, in Adelaide, Australia. Fiona Hanson / PA Images via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II is greeted by local corgi enthusiasts as she visits Canada, on May 24, 2005. Chris Jackson / Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II meets a corgi named Spencer, as she arrives at Welshpool Station, on April 28, 2010, in Welshpool, Wales. Ben Stansall / WPA Pool / Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II looks at a corgi during the opening of new dog kennels, on March 17, 2015, in London. Paul Ellis / Pool / AFP via Getty Images A drone display in the sky resembles a corgi, during the Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II celebrations at Buckingham Palace, on June 4, 2022, in London.

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Queen ElizabethRoyal Family Kenneth BachorBuzzFeed News Photo Editor Kenneth Bachor is a Photo Editor for BuzzFeed News and is based in New York. Contact Kenneth Bachor at [email protected]. Got a confidential tip? Submit it here