Queen Elizabeth’s childhood friend Lady Myra Butter has died.
The 96-year-old British monarch’s dear friend, cousin of her late husband Prince Philip, died “peacefully” on July 29, a death notice confirmed in The Daily Telegraph newspaper.
A descendant of Tsar Nicholas I of Russia and playwright Alexander Pushkin, Butter remained close to the queen.
Last year, Butter shared fond memories of growing up with the 96-year-old royal and their swimming days and being the Brownies and Girl Guides.
She said of their swimming lessons: “The Queen said it was a very long time ago.
“Well, that’s fine, I think I was 12. I’m pretty lucky in that department. My memory is good and his is too.”
She added: “They asked some girls to be part of the thing to make it more fun.
“In Guides and Brownies it was a real mix, which was really nice, friends, friends of [the family], and all the people in the royal mews, their children, they were Brownies and Guides. Just kind of a normal pack really.”
Butter said her lifelong friend had “a really good sense of humor, which lasted her whole life.”
The Duke of Edinburgh – the oldest husband of a British monarch – died in April 2021, aged 99.
Months after her husband’s death, the Queen mourned the loss of two of her ladies-in-waiting.
In December last year, she lost Ann Fortune FitzRoy, Duchess of Grafton, who was mistress of the monarch’s robes – a role that put her in charge of all jewelry and clothing matters for the queen, as well as organizing the turnaround for ladies-in-waiting and other duties at state ceremonies – from 1967 until her death on December 3, 2021, at the age of 101.
Diana Maxwell, Lady Farnham, who was the Queen’s Maid for 34 years, was 90 when she died on December 29.
The monarch opened up about her personal grief during her Christmas speech.
She said in her televised message to the nation: “Of course for many this time of year will be tinged with sadness – some mourning the loss of loved ones and others missing friends and members of the family moved apart for safety, when they really all want for Christmas is a simple hug or a push of the hand.
“If you are among them, you are not alone, and let me assure you of my thoughts and prayers.”
