The Queen Worked Through the Heatwave—But Now She’s Going to Balmoral

For the last few days, Queen Elizabeth has been valiantly surviving the historic heat wave overtaking Britain at Windsor Castle. On Tuesday, Britain’s hottest day on record, she connected with Jane Hartley, the newest ambassador from the U.S., for a virtual meeting. On Thursday morning, however, she was spotted in a police convoy finally leaving the castle for the slightly more temperate climate at her Balmoral Estate in Scotland.

The queen typically leaves for her summer estate during the last few weeks of July, and tends to stay through August. In March, the Sun reported that Craigowan Lodge, the seven-bedroom stone house about a mile from the castle, had been renovated with a wheelchair lift to accommodate her mobility issues and advanced security features, including a new fence and an upgraded CCTV system. An insider told the tabloid that she plans to spend more time there as she ages. “For many years we have thought it would be the perfect place for the Queen to spend more time when she’s older,” the source said. “It’s one of her favorite places in the country.”

Scotland is typically 3 to 7 degrees colder than London during the summer, and this week the estate has already seen rain. Still, Windsor Castle is equipped to keep cool during the summer while also saving energy. In 2013, the Financial Times reported that the queen had installed smart meters to efficiently run the castle’s combined heating and cooling system, which also captures excess heat from electricity generation. According to the Daily Mail, the queen has been also pictured with a Dyson Pure Hot + Cool Link fan in her sitting room in the past.

Though the queen was keeping cool as she carried out her duties, Princess Anne, Prince Charles, and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, have attended a few different outdoor events as the unprecedented temperatures hit the country. On Monday, Charles and Camilla embarked on a three-day tour of Devon and Cornwall, where they visited Mousehole Harbor, met craftspeople, and honored veterans on the 40th anniversary of the Falklands War. (Yes, Charles wore a full suit for all of the engagements.) Anne visited a memorial service for the anniversary of the Hyde Park bombing on Wednesday, and on Thursday she wore a jaunty chapeau as she visted SafeLane Global, an organization that mitigates explosive risks. 

Listen to Vanity Fair’s DYNASTY podcast now.