“The Crown” season 2 will feature the fascinating and less than charming meeting of Queen Elizabeth II and the late US First Lady Jackie Kennedy on June 5, 1961. There were prior negotiations as to the who will be invited to dinner at Buckingham Palace, but two suggested names by the First Lady were not invited.
Jackie Kennedy was not completely happy with the guest list, and according to stories, she later confided to writer Gore Vidal that “…the Queen had her revenge.” So, what actually happened?
The guest list
In an article written by Craig Brown posted on the Reader’s Digest website, it recounted that Queen Elizabeth II was reluctant to invite Jackie’s sister, Princess Lee Radziwill because she was a divorcee.
By royal tradition and as head of the Church of England, the Queen could not invite people who have had divorced. But the Queen relented to pressure and was forced to include the Princess among the dinner’s guests.
The story shared that as retaliation, Queen Elizabeth II surprisingly did not or failed to invite two guests, whose names the First Lady put forward. These were Princess Margaret and Princess Marina.
Jackie Kennedy, who was still at the early stage of JFK’s presidency, felt unsure of herself and interpreted the Queen’s act of omission “as a plot do her down.” She complained that the Queen invited “every Commonwealth minister of agriculture they could find.”
Jackie felt awkward and even persecuted
The First Lady felt awkward and even persecuted during the dinner, and she thought that the Queen resented her.
Such thought did not extend to Prince Philip who was described by Jackie as nice but nervous. However, she commented that one felt no relationship between the Queen and her husband.
According to Vidal, the only time that Jackie considers the Queen “seems remotely human” was during a conversation about the First Lady’s visit to Canada.
Jackie shared how exhausting being on public view for hours on end. The Queen was said to have replied, “One gets crafty after a while and learns how to save oneself.”
Claire Foy's favorite episode
Claire Foy, who is nominated for an Emmy for playing Queen Elizabeth II in “The Crown,” told the LA Times she is partial to the episode about JFK and Jackie’s visit to Buckingham Palace.
Jodi Balfour will play Jackie.
Creator Peter Morgan said that it is a nice episode. He explained, it is “very much about Elizabeth’s own lack of confidence due to suddenly feeling middle-aged.” Morgan said it showed the Queen’s vulnerability, which she’s feeling a bit dumpy, thick-ankled and lame. On top of it all, she has to deal with Jackie Kennedy.
Nine months later
When Jackie Kennedy visited the Queen at Buckingham Palace nine months later, the atmosphere was different.The First Lady was more confident this time. In front of the tv cameras, Jackie said, “I don’t think I should say anything about it except how grateful I am and how charming she was.”
“The Crown” season 2 begins streaming on Netflix December 8.
