Personal Encounters
Rose Kennedy - Ambassador & Mrs. Joseph Kennedy at Windsor Castle, 1938
In December 1937, Joseph Kennedy, father of the future President, John F. Kennedy, was appointed U.S. Ambassador to Great Britain. It was among the most prestigious of all the diplomatic posts—one he had lobbied for over many months. When he and his large, rambunctious family arrived in London in March 1938, English society welcomed them with open arms.
In London, the American Ambassador and his wife soared to the heights of British society. In the spring of 1938, just before war would cast its shadow across Europe, the couple luxuriated in the warmth of English hospitality, hobnobbing with aristocrats and royalty at the many balls, dinners, regattas, and derbies of the season. The highlight was surely the April weekend that they spent at Windsor Castle, guests of King George VI and his wife, Queen Elizabeth. In great detail, Rose Kennedy chronicled those unforgettable days in her diary.
Rose Kennedy’s account of the weekend at Windsor Castle, April 9–11, 1938, page 1
Mrs. Kennedy’s account reads like a fairy tale, complete with footmen, ladies-in-waiting, lavish gowns, sumptuous meals, and glittering jewels.
Other guests at Windsor Castle that weekend included Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, Mrs. Chamberlain, Lord Halifax (Foreign Secretary), Lady Halifax, Lord Elphinstone, and Lady Elphinstone, sister of the Queen.
National Archives, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston, Massachusetts, Rose Kennedy Papers Collection, Courtesy of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation.
Excerpt:
“There were numerous servants in evidence, in full livery; soon one of them brought us sherry. Another, who as well as livery wore a peruke [wig], was especially appointed to attend us and led the way whenever we left the suite . . . At 8:20 the footman came to escort us to the Green Reception Room. At 8:30 the King and Queen came in . . .”
—From Rose Kennedy’s account
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Rose Kennedy’s account of the weekend at Windsor Castle, April 9–11, 1938, page 2
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Rose Kennedy’s account of the weekend at Windsor Castle, April 9–11, 1938, page 3
Mrs. Kennedy’s account reads like a fairy tale, complete with footmen, ladies-in-waiting, lavish gowns, sumptuous meals, and glittering jewels.
Other guests at Windsor Castle that weekend included Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, Mrs. Chamberlain, Lord Halifax (Foreign Secretary), Lady Halifax, Lord Elphinstone, and Lady Elphinstone, sister of the Queen.
National Archives, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston, Massachusetts, Rose Kennedy Papers Collection, Courtesy of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation.
Excerpt:
“I found it very difficult to accustom myself to saying ‘Ma’am’ when addressing the Queen and she told me not to bother; putting me at my ease. She has a very pleasant voice, a beautiful English complexion, great dignity and charm; is simple in manner, stands very erect and holds herself well and is every inch a queen. . . . I lay in bed thinking [I] must be dreaming that I, Rose Kennedy, a simple, young matron from Boston, am really here at Windsor Castle the guest of the Queen and two little Princesses.”
—From Rose Kennedy’s account
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Windsor Castle, Green Drawing Room, photograph by Mark Fiennes, 1997
Courtesy of The Royal Collection
© 2006, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
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Ambassador and Mrs. Joseph P. Kennedy at the embassy residence in London, photograph by Peter Hunter, 1939
National Archives, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston, Massachusetts [NLJFK-KFC2322P]
© Peter Hunter/Nederlands fotomuseum, Rotterdam
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