Did Queen Elizabeth II Have Suitors Before She Met Prince Philip?

Queen Elizabeth II has been reigning for such a long time that, for most royal family fans today, she was already the Queen and married to Prince Philip when they were born. This raises a very interesting question for younger followers who were not yet around during Her Majesty’s younger days — did Elizabeth have suitors or lovers before she met her husband?

Of course, Buckingham Palace would never make a comment about these things, so fans should take everything here with a grain of salt. But one potential pre-Philip love interest that the young Elizabeth might have had is Henry George Reginald Molyneux Herbert.

Apparently, Prince Philip back then was not really viewed favorably by Queen Elizabeth II’s family. “Prince Philip was deemed entirely unsuitable at the time,” Rhys Hoffman explained on Quora. “Despite being a Prince of Greece and Denmark, his Family were exiles and impoverished,” he added.

Discounting Philip, there were a few who were considered suitable for the young princess. “The only serious contender to Prince Philip was Henry Herbert (later 7th Earl of Caernarvon),” Hoffman explained. “His Family own the Highclere Estate (better known as Downton Abbey).”

In the royalty-focused Netflix series “The Crown,” the young Elizabeth was shown reunited with Lord “Porchey” Porchester, who was her racing manager and close friend. This happened at a time when Prince Philip’s fidelity is in doubt, making the show’s plot even more thrilling.

While the show’s plot might differ from actual events, there is no doubt that Her Majesty was close to Lord Porchester. In fact, one can gauge that they had a close bond based on the affectionate nickname “Porchey” she used to call him, a name in reference to his previous title.

The young Princess Elizabeth knew Porchey when both were still young. It was her father, King George VI, who introduced that pair as he was a close friend to Porchey’s father, Henry senior. Both quickly bonded as they share a passion for horses, which explains why Porchey became her racing manager later on.

There were reports that the young princess might have found Porchey attractive. “She clearly found him sexually attractive,” a lady-in-waiting once told The Daily Telegraph’s Graham Turner.

However, Porchey lost the opportunity to get closer to her when Prince Phillip caught the eye of the princess, which was even reflected in “The Crown” in one of its scenes. “I have nothing to hide from you,” Elizabeth’s character told Philip in the series. “Porchey is a friend. And yes, there are those who would have preferred me to marry him, but to everyone's regret and frustration the only person I have ever loved is you.”

Nevertheless, the Queen remained close friends with Porchey until his death. In fact, she attended his private funeral, which is considered to be a break with protocol.