Edward VIII praises Queen Elizabeth II’s reign in 1969
Her Majesty’s roots and relations will be re-examined as part of tonight’s Channel 4 documentary The Queen’s Lost Family, which will look at George VI’s father George V, and the many stories that surround his children. It documents how the Royal Family changed from the Twenties and into the Fifties, detailing how the Firm coped during World War 1 and World War 2. Among the many tales likely to be studied are the lives of George V’s five sons and daughter, those recognised as the Queen’s uncles and aunties.
Prince Edward, Prince Albert, Princess Mary and Prince Henry all enjoyed long lives, a luxury sadly not afforded to George VI, who would become King, and John.
But John’s plight is perhaps the most interesting of these stories, after he tragically died at the age of 13, eight years into his father’s reign as monarch.
Nicknamed Johnnie, the youngest child of George V spent his early life living in Sandringham alongside his siblings.
Described as “charming and very amusing” by the Dowager Empress of Russia, John was once outed by his father as being George V’s only child who wasn’t obedient.
Royal heartbreak: Queen’s forgotten uncle ‘disturbing to brothers and sisters’ (Image: GETTY)
Royal Family: Prince John and his brothers and sisters (Image: GETTY)
But by the age of four, doctors found that John – who was born in 1905 – had developed signs of a disability likely to be autism, and epilepsy.
After the diagnosis, the family…
