King Charles has written a foreword for a new book on Balmoral, using it to reflect on the late Queen Elizabeth’s attachment to the Aberdeenshire estate and her final days there. The book, titled Balmoral by Mary Miers and Christopher Simon Sykes, is due out on 11th June.
The King said Balmoral had held a uniquely special place in the hearts of his family and himself since his earliest childhood, and that his mother had particularly treasured her time there. He wrote that it was in those “most beloved” surroundings that she chose to spend her final days, a line that frames the estate not just as a royal home but as the setting for the end of her life.
That makes the foreword more than a standard introduction to a coffee-table book. It is a personal royal tribute published ahead of release, and it places Balmoral at the centre of the family’s memory of Queen Elizabeth, who died in September 2022. The book also features photography by Christopher Simon Sykes, adding a visual record to a subject the King has described in deeply emotional terms.
Princess Anne gave a more complicated account in a documentary, saying she believed there was a moment when her mother felt it would be more difficult if she died at Balmoral. She said the family tried to persuade the Queen that location should not be part of the decision-making, a detail that sits awkwardly beside the King’s account of her choosing to spend her final days there.
Anne said she was with Queen Elizabeth for the last 24 hours of her life, and later expressed hope that her mother felt that decision was right in the end. The book’s release on 11th June will now turn that private family memory into a public one, with Charles’s foreword setting the tone before readers reach the first page.
