Rarely without her beloved animals, Queen Elizabeth is one of the only known world leaders to be so widely identified with a particular breed, and she has been heard to say “My corgis are my family,” according to Vanity Fair.
Queen Elizabeth’s love of Corgis began in 1933 when her father brought her home a pup named Dookie.
Shortly after that she began breeding them herself, a practice she has only recently given up as she does not wish to leave any young dogs behind to grieve her when she dies.
These images highlight her lifelong passion.
Queen Elizabeth II with one of her corgis
Queen Elizabeth II arrives at King’s Cross railway station with 4 corgis
The Queen and her corgis, 1969
The Queen with a retinue of corgis meets All Blacks
The Queen with a retinue of corgis meets the New Zealand All Blacks at Buckingham Palace, November 2002
footman walking corgis
Footman walking the Royal Dogs, a dorgi and a corgi, in Buckingham Palace gardens.
Queen Elizabeth and two corgis at Liverpool station
Queen Elizabeth and two corgis at Liverpool Street Station
Queens dead Corgi’s headstone
The grave of one of her favorite dogs
Elizabeth at Windsor, 1944
The Royal family walking the corgis at Balmoral Castle estate during a family holiday, 1957
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip with a corgi in the drawing room of Balmoral Castle
Queen Elizabehg and Prince Philip with a corgi in the drawing room of Balmoral Castle, 1977