Queen Elizabeth II dies at Balmoral: A monarch's deep love for Scotland that lasted a lifetime

dailyrecord.co.uk:

The 72,000 acre Balmoral estate always appeared to be a very special place for the Queen from her childhood and into old age.It seems fitting now, that her majesty passed away at the place she was known to both to her and her staff as "the big rest”.As her granddaughter, Eugenie, said in 2016, in the TV documentary to celebrate HM’s 90th year: “Granny is most happy there.”“Granny “ herself remarked that, “It’s nice to be able to sleep in the same bed for six weeks.”It was where she could relax or rather being the Queen, where she could stride out over the hills with her dogs for hours on end.

Although she didn’t go shooting, she was still stalking stags until the 80s and riding out daily even in her nineties, without any protection from a fall other than that ubiquitous headscarf.As well as the August and September break, she and the Duke would usually spend a week in May at Craigowan, a smaller seven bedroom house on the estate, when she would ride or drive around the whole of her acres making sure all was well for the thousands of tourists who visited Balmoral every year.The moment Elizabeth arrived on Deeside, she would change into one of her well worn comfortable tartan skirts, stout walking shoes, woolly socks, a buttoned up cashmere cardigan and, if the temperature fell, another cardie on top.

It was not all holiday of course.The Government red boxes still arrived every day and there was usually some dignitary to be briefly entertained as well as the obligatory weekend visit from the current Prime Minister to endure or enjoy.Mrs Thatcher was definitely in the former category.

Country pursuits were not her idea of a good time.For her first visit she arrived in heels, with no flat shoes and was forced to borrow a